Results and Discussion
The habitat of the Visherskaya environmental group is located within the Krasnovishersky district of Perm Krai. The
Krasnovishersky area is located above 60° north latitude and is the natural territory of honeybees that has the most unfavourable
climatic factors for honeybees. The harsh climatic conditions of this area are due to the significant impact of the Ural Mountains
and the remoteness of the Gulf Stream.
The advantages of the Prikamsky bee populations of the Kama Cis-Ural territory are as follows: They are winter-hardy. None of the
existing races (subspecies) of honey bees are able to survive without play-flight during the 7-month winter. They are resistant
to nosema disease, produce a large number of wax and well-built cells, and are capable of refilling the fodder reserves with shortintensive
forage. They are able to produce a honey bag with up to 85 mg of nectar, and the average daily gains reach 21 kg. Swarming
occurs during a short period of time in the middle of summer. Queens have a high fecundity.
Studies performed in the Kama Cis-Ural territory in 2009–2013 revealed that the Central Russian Prikamsky bee populations are
5–10 mg heavier than crossbred bees. The moisture percentage in the body of Prikamsky bees has an average of 5–7% lower than that
of crossbred bees. It has been observed that winter bee generations have the lowest water content in the body: Prikamsky bee
population — 64%, crossbred bees — 70%. The higher water content in the body of crossbred bees indicates that they remain active
longer than the Prikamsky bee population. Significant activity of crossbred bees in the winter leads to high rates of rectum filling
in March (45.3 ± 1.42 mg). The maximum load of the Central Russian race is lower in April (36.6 ± 1.62 mg). Slow and relatively
low rectum filling is an adaptation to a prolonged winter period. The conditions of the Kama Cis-Ural territory cause the crossbred
bees to commence brood incubation earlier and to develop rapidly in the spring. However, in the early summer, the queens of the
native Central Russian bees manage to outperform the breeding power of the imported bees. The maximum daily average breeding
performance of the Prikamsky bee population (2862 ± 208 eggs/day) is higher than that of crossbred bees (1913 ± 168 eggs/day).
Therefore, the gene pool of the Prikamsky population of Central Russian bees has a certain value and requires preservation for future
generations.