Problems of preservation of the dark European honeybee Apis mellifera mellifera L.

The article is devoted to discussing problem of reducing numbers of the dark European honeybee Apis mellifera mellifera L. in the natural and historical habitats. By analyzing changes in forest legislation and administrative policies on the territory of the European part of contemporary Russia, it is established that one of the main causes of the identified problem is lack of housing for migrating bee swarms due to the extremely insufficient number of old-growth trees with suitable for habitat hollows. The aim of the work is to justify the creation of network of specially protected natural area (OOPTs) – of botanical natural monuments and entomological reserves of regional importance as organizational measures for protection, guarding and recovery of the dark European honeybee populations. The key elements of the OOPTs are proposed to make communities of insect and plants that are in protocooperation with each other – trees, in the hollows of which live colonies of dark European honeybee. With the purpose of reducing the probability of breaking the trunk with large hollows, the system of care for trees is presented, which is based on the reduction of the windage for the crown and its stabilization: the reducing tree height, the increase in laciness crown, the formation of a symmetrical crown, installation of tree crowns stabilization and protection system against breakdowns. Creation of OOPTs aimed at conservation and restoration of the Dark European Honeybee populations will contribute to the conservation and increase of biodiversity, the organization of systematic study of the dark European honeybee populations and other pollinating insects, the formation of a network of environmental routes with upbringing, enlightenment, educational and scientific character, the disclosure of the recreational potential of the territory, the employment of the local population by creating additional jobs.