Apis mellifera cypria(Cyprus honey bee) is a subspecies of the Western honey bee. Its habitat is the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.
Behaviour
A. m. cypria has been reported to be a less swarmy bee when compared to other European honey bees.[2]
In a 2008 study, the growth rate of colonies was observed to be lowest during the hottest month, while the most growth occurred during a month with temperature closer to the yearly average (or slightly above).[3]
Defense
Papachristoforou et al found that in the presence of the predatory oriental hornet (Vespa orientalis) the bees initially generate an acoustic response,[4] and if the encounter escalates, they kill the invader by asphyxiation.[5]
Taxonomy
A separate subspecies from the other two Greek bee subspecies, A. m. macedonica and A. m. cecropia.[6] DNA analysis found its mtDNA is more closely related to A.m. anatoliaca and A. m. meda[7] and belongs to the O Lineage (Oriental branch) of Apis mellifera.[1]