WELLS, H.*; MUZAFFAR, N; Univ. of Tulsa, Oklahoma USA; National Agriculture Research Center, Pakistan: Risk sensitivity in Apis cerana

Risk sensitivity of the Asian hive bee (Apis cerana) was tested in Pakistan, which is within its endemic range. European honeybees (Apis mellifera caucasica), which are an introduced species in the Indian Subcontinent, were used as a bioassay for year-round nectar resources and for wasp predation intensity in the Indus Valley where the study was conducted. Both starvation and predation are significant risk factors. Unlike the European honeybee, extreme flower fidelity to color when visiting a blue-yellow dimorphic patch was not observed. In fact, Apis cerana was found to be a risk-averse forager when offered rewards in either a blue-white or blue-yellow dimorphic artificial flower patch where mean reward in the two flower morphs were equal but where variance in reward differed.