Hawaiian Honey Bee
Hundreds of edible plants require the pollination that the Hawaiian honey bee provides. Because the Hawaiian honey bee is relatively easy to manage, humans have domesticated them to maximize pollination in the area.
The Agricultural Society of Hawaii initially faced great difficulty in importing quality honey bees. In 1852, when a ship from Boston attempted to transport the first hives to Hawaii, increased temperatures in the tropics melted most of the honeycomb, killing the bees within it. Other honey bee colonies were meant to come from New Zealand, but never arrived in Hawaii. Two hives from Boston were shipped the following year. While one hive was packed in ice, it arrived in poor condition and the colony died soon after it was auctioned for $13.
As a result of these failed attempts, the Agricultural Society announced an offer of ten dollars for each honey bee hive a person could bring into the Hawaiian Islands. A Californian named William Buck brought three German honey bee hives to Hawaii in October of 1857. Remarkably, the hives survived 18 days in transit. The Society paid $100 per hive, and these German bees became the first Hawaiian honey bees. After a year, the initial three colonies had multiplied into nine colonies.
By the 1890s, other honey bee species, such as Italian bees, arrived in Hawaii via Los Angeles. After the honey production boom at the start of the 20th century, different parts of the Hawaiian Islands began maintaining colonies of honey bees. As a result, a wide variety of Hawaiian honey is available today.
Modern Hawaiian honey bees feed on different types of nectar sources, including kiwi guava, lantana, acacia, Christmas berry, California pepper, coconut, pineapple, pili and other plants, though guava remain their major nectar source. The Hawaiian honey bee is known for producing honey of excellent quality.
