Indian Stingless Bee

Indian Stingless Bee

Tetragonula iridipennis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte]

In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%

6 Verified sightings at Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte]
June Best month

About the Indian Stingless Bee

The Indian stingless bee or dammar bee, Tetragonula iridipennis, is a species of bee belonging to the family Apidae, subfamily Apinae. It was first described by Frederick Smith in 1854 who found the species in what is now the island of Sri Lanka. Many older references erroneously placed this species in Melipona, an unrelated genus from the New World, and until recently it was placed in Trigona, therefore still often mistakenly referred to as Trigona iridipennis. For centuries, colonies of T. iridipennis have been kept in objects such as clay pots so that their highly prized medicinal honey can be utilized.

Tetragonula iridipennis belongs to the complex genus of stingless bees Tetragonula which contains more than 30 described species from the Indian subcontinent. Until recently, all species in the group were treated as belonging to the single genus "Trigona". Tetragonula iridipennis belongs to the smaller Iridipennis species group which includes four primary species: Tetragonula iridipennis, Tetragonula praeterita, Tetragonula ruficornis, and Tetragonula bengalensis. These four species were proposed in the 19th century and were poorly characterized. They... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability

More parks will be added in future updates.

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~10%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing an Indian Stingless Bee in Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte]?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Indian Stingless Bee sighting in Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 149th most-seen of the 182 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see an Indian Stingless Bee in Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte]?

May–July, September and November–December

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Indian Stingless Bee in Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] on a given day, against under 5% in January–April, August and October, the lowest months.

Where else can you see an Indian Stingless Bee?

Only Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte], in our data

Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Indian Stingless Bee sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.

Which relatives of the Indian Stingless Bee live in Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte]?

Same family: Apidae

The closest relatives of the Indian Stingless Bee that you can see in Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] (family Apidae, Honey Bees, Bumble Bees, and Allies) are Asian Honey Bee (about 30%), Giant Honey Bee (about 10%) and Red Dwarf Honey Bee (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Indian Stingless Bee sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Indian Stingless Bee is recorded against all the insects logged in Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] (6 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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