Foraging fidelity of honeybees and abundance of insect visitors on some Horticultural crops

Abstract

The study was carried out on the foraging behavioral aspects which are either genetically influenced or are dependent on external factors on four horticultural crops viz., cabbage, Chinese cabbage, blueberry and peach at Bee Research Station, CSK HPKV, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India during 2019. The significantly highest foraging rate and foraging speed of Apis dorsata was registered as 11.76 and 9.91 respectively on four crops altogether. Apis cerana was the most predominant insect visitor with maximum foraging intensity as insects/m2/minute during peak bloom on cabbage (3.47) as well as on Chinese cabbage (3.61). While Apis dorsata was predominant pollinator on peach (6.67 insects/m2/minute) and blueberry (3.85 insects/m2/minute). This study would be helpful to beekeepers as it is very important to understand the behavior patterns represented by bees for better management aspects.