[uglybiker]

There were no honeybees in the western hemisphere until they were brought here by Europeans.

Yes there were. European varieties were brought over because they are easier to manage.

[cripplecreek]

The Origin of Honeybees

Recent genetic analyses have proved that honeybees originated in Africa and not in Asia, as previously thought. "Every honey bee alive today had a common ancestor in Africa" concluded the team.

"Our analysis indicates that the honey bee, Apis mellifera, originated in Africa and spread into Europe by at least two ancient migrations," said Charles W. Whitfield, a professor of entomology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The genus Apis contains 10 species, nine of which endemic to Asia. The only exception, Apis mellifera, the common honeybee, is found from sub-Saharan Africa to Central Asia to Northern Europe, and it is represented by more than two dozen distinct geographical subspecies.

From Africa, the species spread to Europe and Asia, creating distinct genetic lineages (subspecies), including the Italian bee, used extensively for agricultural pollination. "The migrations resulted in two European populations that are geographically close, but genetically quite different," Whitfield said.

"In fact, the two European subspecies are more related to honey bees in Africa than to each other."

Europeans introduced in the Americas at least 10 subspecies from different parts of Europe, Near East and Northern Africa beginning with 1622. In 1956, a South African savanna subspecies, A. m. scutellata, the killer bee (photo), was brought to Brazil in order to increase honey production. These aggressive African bees rapidly spread in all directions, from South America to North America, hybridizing and displacing previously introduced European honey bees. "Clearly, these African 'killer' bees are more aggressive and exhibit other traits that beekeepers and bee breeders dislike," Whitfield said.