Domesticated
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Apis mellifera mellifera
European Dark Bee, German Black Bee, German Dark Bee, Dark European Bee
Apis mellifera mellifera is a subspecies of the Western honey bee native to Northern Europe and western Russia. Historically, it was the first honey bee introduced to North America, brought by European colonists to Jamestown in 1622. The subspecies is characterized by its dark coloration, large body size, and unusually short tongue relative to other honey bees. It has been largely displaced in commercial beekeeping by the Italian honey bee (A. m. ligustica), which arrived in the United States in 1859. Conservation efforts exist to preserve its genetic resources, though its status as a 'native' subspecies is complicated by extensive hybridization across much of its former range.