India GOGiant honey bee: the rock bee of India's high branches and cornices
भंवर, सारंग (bhanvar, sarang)
The giant honey bee, or rock bee, is one of the largest honey bees and a wild one: each colony hangs a single open comb, up to about 1.5 metres long, from a high branch, a cliff or the cornice of a tall building, covered by a living curtain of workers. It is the most defensive of all honey bees, so the rule is simple: admire it from a distance and never disturb a colony.
Asia's largest honey bee, nearly twice the length of a hive bee. Each colony builds a single open comb, up to about a metre and a half long, under a high branch or the eave of a tall building, and covers it with a living curtain of workers.
👀 How to recognise it
Look up rather than around: a dark, glistening crescent hanging from a high branch or under a cornice is a colony, often with others beside it. When something disturbs it, a ripple runs across the bees in a split second — the 'shimmering' with which a colony wards off predators. Single foragers, big and amber-banded, work flowering trees and hedges.
Where to see it
Vrindavan
A wild honey bee and a major pollinator of crops such as mango and cotton. In this dry belt of north India its colonies are seasonal visitors: they arrive in October–November as the autumn and winter crops flower, raise their swarms through the spring and leave in late May or early June. Honey itself has a place in Vrindavan's year: at the Banke Bihari temple the deity is bathed at midnight on Janmashtami in milk, curd and honey.
Vrindavan Parikrama Marg (in season)
What a colony looks like
The comb can reach 150 cm in length and 70 cm in height, and up to 100,000 workers cover it in layers, so from the ground it reads as a dark, glistening crescent rather than as bees. Colonies like company, and up to 200 have been counted on a single tree. Honey is stored in an upper corner of the comb.
Watch for a moment and the curtain may ripple. When something disturbs them, the bees lift their abdomens one after another and a wave runs across the comb in a fraction of a second. This shimmering is thought to intimidate predators. A single forager is big and amber-banded, nearly twice the length of a hive bee, and works flowering trees and hedges.
Is it dangerous?
It can be. Entomologists describe the giant honey bee as the most defensive of all honey bees, more so than the African honey bee, and a disturbed colony defends itself in numbers. Most colonies hang far above the ground, and trouble starts when one is disturbed: never throw anything at a comb or try to get close to one, and do not linger directly under it. If bees start coming at you, move away. If someone has been stung many times or has trouble breathing, call 112.
A bee that moves with the seasons
The giant honey bee is never kept in hives. Colonies migrate between nesting sites with the flowering seasons, often over long distances, and a colony has been seen returning to the very same branch six months later. In the dry belt of north India they are seasonal visitors: they arrive in October and November as the autumn and winter crops flower, raise their swarms through spring and leave in late May or early June, missing the hottest weeks and the monsoon.
It is a major wild pollinator of crops such as mango and cotton. Its honey and wax come from honey hunting, traditionally on a moonless night, with ropes or makeshift ladders and fire to drive the bees off a high branch or cliff.
Where to see it: Vrindavan
In Vrindavan the colonies settle in the old town in the cool months, from about October to May. Look up rather than around along the parikrama path: combs hang under the eaves of tall old buildings and from the high branches of old trees, while foragers work the flowering trees and hedges below. A research-grade record on iNaturalist from December 2023 comes from the old town near Keshi Ghat.
Honey has its own moment in the town's year: at midnight on Janmashtami the deity at Banke Bihari is bathed in milk, curd and honey.
❓ FAQ
What is the giant honey bee called in Hindi?
Bhanvar or sarang (भंवर, सारंग). In English it is also called the rock bee.
Is the giant honey bee dangerous to people?
A disturbed colony can attack in numbers; it is the most defensive honey bee. The danger comes from disturbing a colony, so keep your distance and never provoke one.
When can I see giant honey bees in Vrindavan?
From about October to May. The colonies leave in late May or early June and are absent in the hottest weeks and the monsoon.
Can the giant honey bee be kept in a hive?
No. It builds a single open comb in high places and migrates with the seasons, so its honey comes only from wild colonies.
How big is the giant honey bee?
A worker is nearly twice the length of a hive bee, and a single colony's comb can be about 1.5 metres long.
Sources (6)
- Giant honey bee, Apis dorsata (University of Florida IFAS)
- Apis dorsata (Wikipedia)
- Apis laboriosa (Wikipedia): the world's largest honey bee
- Phenology of migration and decline in colony numbers and crop hosts of giant honeybee (Apis dorsata F.) in semiarid environment of northwest India (Journal of Insects, 2014)
- iNaturalist observation, Vrindavan, December 2023
- Janmashtami at Banke Bihari temple (ETV Bharat)