Beekeeping Glossary
This list of terms comes from Cornell University’s Dyce Lab for Honey Bee Studies.
There are currently 8 terms in this directory beginning with the letter G.
ganglia (singular: ganglion)
Ganglia are nerve centers in the thorax and abdomen that constitute the nervous system. In the honey bee, ganglia control muscle movements more than the brain does.
Genes
Genes are the working subunits of DNA and are the basic unit of heredity, passed down to an individual’s offspring through reproduction. Genes act as instructions to make proteins and other molecules.
genetic diversity
Genetic diversity is the presence of many different gene versions in a population (in this course, a honey bee colony). High genetic diversity in a honey bee colony is the result of the queen mating with many different drones. High genetic diversity provides the colony with the ability to adapt to changing environments or pressures.
Genome
A genome is an organism’s complete set of genetic material carried by DNA. The genome includes information for a variety of elements, the most important being genes.
Genus
Genus is a rank in the classification of life, below family and above species. Honey bees are members of the genus Apis. Genus names are always italicized.
gland
Glands are honey bees’ organs that secrete chemical substances. See Dufour’s gland, hypopharyngeal gland, mandibular gland, Nasonov gland, and wax gland.
grafting frame
The grafting frame is the frame of grafted queen cells that will be placed in cell builder colonies for queen rearing using the Doolittle method. Grafting frames often hold three bars, each containing 15 queen cups.
