Morphological characteristics of the Central Anatolian (A. m. anatoliaca) and Caucasian (A. m. caucasica) honey bees

The 42 honey bee colonies collected from 5 apiaries at 4 different localities in the Central Anatolia and breeder stock of Turkish Development Foundation (TKV) were used as the material of this research. The 32 morphological characteristics were determined for the Central Anatolian ecotypes (A. m. anatoliaca) obtained from Kirsehir, Beypazari, Cankiri and Eskisehir and for the Caucasian race (A. m. caucasica). The discriminant analysis procedures were applied to morphological data measured from 25 workers from each colony and the results showed that the Central Anatolian ecotypes and Caucasian race constituted two distinct groups. The Central Anatolian ecotypes formed an intermingled cluster when individual Dee values were considered whereas colony averages made possible the discrimination of the regional population into corresponding ecotypes. The analyses showed that the 57.62% of the individual bees and 97.62% of the colonies were included in their own groups. In conclusion, it was clearly shown that Central Anatolia with its natural advantages preserved some original honey bee populations despite the extensive use of replacement queen bees and migratory beekeeping.