Karnika or Karpatka: which is better, a description of the bee breeds and which one to choose

The productivity of the apiary and the quality of honey directly depend on the breed of bees bred. Each variety of honey insects is used to living in certain climatic conditions, and it is in them that it will be most comfortable. Breeds of bees Karnik or Karpatka are bred in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains and the Alps, but what is better to breed in your own apiary, we will look into the details further.

Description of the Carpathians

In the natural environment, this breed of bees is found in the western regions of Ukraine, namely in the Carpathians. The habitat of the Carpathian has been declared a protected area, and the importation of other varieties of honey insects there is prohibited.

In the middle of the last century, scientists carried out breeding work, as a result of which the breed was improved and several varieties were bred:

• Maikop bee is characterized by a yellowish tinge;
• Rakhiv Carpathians painted silver;
• usual Carpathian differs from relatives in a grayish tint.

Honey whales of this breed are very hardy, easily take root in various weather and climatic conditions.

1. The egg-laying queen is large, weighs up to 2.6 g, the infertile female weighs slightly less, up to 2.1 g.
2. The color of the female varies from dark cherry to black.
3. The breed is not aggressive, not subject to swarming, calmly allows the beekeeper to inspect the nest.
4. The queen is capable of producing up to 2 thousand fertile eggs per day.
5. With proper care, the breed is resistant to major diseases and pests, but requires treatment from wax moths.
6. The proboscis is long, reaches a size of up to 7 mm, which allows insects to extract nectar from any honey plants.
7. Carpathian productivity is high. Each family brings up to 40 kg of valuable and useful product per season.

Important! Karpatka is unpretentious to external living conditions, worker bees fly out of the hive in any weather, are not afraid of high humidity and low air temperature.

Carnica features

The breed of bees was bred in the Alpine mountains, so the insects take root perfectly throughout the European continent. Karnika is unpretentious to weather and climatic conditions, easily endures winter with moderate frosts.

1. Insects are characterized by a brown color with small dark and light spots, on top of the body of the bees is covered with silvery villi.
2. The proboscis is long, reaching up to 6.7 mm in size.
3. Worker bees are small, weighing up to 1 g, drones reach a size of up to 2.3 g.
4. Fetal queen is dark brown in color with yellow stripes, weighs up to 2 g, infertile female - up to 1.8 g.
5. The uterus can produce up to 2 thousand fertile eggs per day.
6. To start laying, it is enough that the air temperature warms up to only +5 degrees, so by the beginning of the collection of nectar, the family is fully formed and is gaining strength.
7. The breed is resistant to frost, no additional insulation of the hive is required if the air temperature does not drop below -20 degrees.
8. Karnika rarely gets sick and is affected by harmful parasites, but in winter it requires timely protection against nosematosis.
9. Insect productivity is very high. During the season, each family produces up to 43 kg of a valuable product.

Important! The bees of this breed produce very little propolis, do not take bribes from sunflower and heather varieties of plants.

Bee comparison

To choose the right breed of bees for an apiary, you need to compare all the advantages and possible disadvantages of insects.

Karpatkav show no aggression; v breeding in the steppe regions is not recommended;v aggressive behavior; v breed prone to unplanned swarming;

Breed	Advantages	Disadvantages
	v not prone to swarming; v adapted to different weather and climate conditions; v rapid family development; v fly out for a bribe in rainy, cloudy and cool weather; v after the winter holiday there is a small percentage of death; v collect nectar under conditions of poor flowering of melliferous plants; v are characterized by natural immunity to various diseases and harmful insects; v produce a large amount of by-products of beekeeping in the process of life.	v further treatment of wax moth hive required; v if there is not enough bribe, they steal honey from other nests.
Karnika	v quickly adapt to unfamiliar conditions; v endure harsh winters; v long-lived workers; v don't steal nectar from other people's hives; v suitable for breeding in large population centers; v after wintering, the minimum amount of death; v perfectly tolerate transportation over long distances.	v insects do not tolerate heat and drought; v the queen does not differ in color from the bulk of her brothers, which makes it difficult to identify her.

Important! Both breeds of honey insects are characterized by high efficiency and productivity, as well as excellent natural immunity to various lesions.

Which is better?

There is no single answer to the question of which breed of bees is better. Insects should be purchased based on the capabilities and needs of the apiary, the climatic and weather conditions of the bee breeding region.

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