Bees for Development Journal Edition 58 - March 2001

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Welcome to Beekeeping & Development edition 58. These lines come to you from Uganda, where am reviewing the apiculture industry on behalf of The Commonwealth Secretariat. |

Uganda sits each side of the Equator in East Africa. Uganda is green and beautiful, and oasts the source of the river Nile, high mountains and many great lakes.

The tropical but mild climate - most of Uganda is over 1000 m in altitude combined with abundant rainfall, support lush vegetation and all the natural resources needed for beekeeping.

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The population of Uganda is about 17 million.

90% of working Ugandans are subsistence farmers or employed in the agriculture sector.

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Perhaps there are around 100,000 beekeepers.

Placed in trees throughout the country are

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large, skillfully-made hives, crafted from a range of materials: bamboo, grass, woven lantana stems covered with smooth clay, banana fibre, hollowed-out palm trunks, logs or bark. As in most places, the bees range from mild-mannered to hot-tempered.

With training, it is possible to harvest honey of excellent quality from these hives, and without harming the bees.

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Yet, honey traders in Uganda’s capital city, Kampala, have had no honey supplies this month, and customers are waiting for honey.

There have been many beekeeping projects here since the 1980s, but with a few good exceptions, most have achieved little. Failed projects have focused only on changing beekeepers from using traditional, local equipment to top-bar or frame hives.

Few beekeepers have had success with these.

The best help for beekeepers here will be assured market access. They need training to provide the honey quality that consumers want, and organisational assistance to ensure that honey is available in the quantity that buyers need.

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This Beekeeping & Development brings you good suggestions for managing those hot tempered bees on page 10; a positive outcome from a special beekeeping project on the Island of Rodrigues (see page six); and another smoker blast full of fresh beekeeping news and ideas! Do not forget to enter the photo contest: Read more on page five.

Mitsla fvadbear Many B&D readers are in remote areas and practice beekeeping with little or no other assistance. We have a long list of readers who would like to receive B&D but for them payment of a subscription is impossible.

Can you help by providing a sponsored subscription? - see how this has helped Sekiku Joseph on page 15.

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P-BAR HIVES

by Wyatt Mangum, Virginia, USA

Top-bar hives were designed for use in tropical Africa, but a few beekeepers in the USA prefer them to Langstroth hives. oe

know a couple of top-bar hive beekeepers in the south-western part of my country who use them |

for honey production. They sell chunks of honeycomb (cut-comb

honey) in plastic containers directly to their consumers. As an extra benefit, they do not need to buy an expensive honey extractor.

have kept 200 honeybee colonies in top-bar hives for crop pollination, package bee and queen bee production, and for my For many years

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do not produce surplus honey. Farmers in my area pay me

bee research.

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costs: about half of the wood for

building my hives is discarded by other people and get it for free! load my hives by hand on to a truck and trailer and move them to farms

increase the combs’ strength and

for pollination. During loading and unloading handle the hives gently,

My hives are not as long as most other top-bar hives. They are just 60 cm

but otherwise they receive no special

long holding 14 combs. This makes

treatment.

a good-sized pollinating colony.

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reduce breakage during transport.

Transporting these hives over rough roads results in very little comb

breakage, even though the combs hang from top-bars and with some

attachments to the walls of the hive.

US$49 per colony for my bees to pollinate cucumbers Cucimis sativus, cantaloupes Cucumis melo and

the spring, bees become crowded

in these smaller hives. Instead of

pumpkins Curcubita spp.

Bee pollination greatly increases the yield and quality of these crops.

Top-bar hives are cheap and easy to build therefore can make more |

pollination profit than beekeepers buying expensive Langstroth hives.

And there is another way

In

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reduce

losing the swarms

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sell the surplus

bees by shaking them off the combs into screen wired boxes called

packages. To shake a comb

always hold and move it vertically. When the |

comb comes to an abrupt stop, the bees fall off.

Beekeeping & Development 58

Shaking combs does not break them provided it is done properly.

Including a queen with the bees,

pipe, allowing one to turn the hive and examine both sides of the comb.

through rental for pollination and the sale of package bees and queens.

For these reasons some beekeepers that have access to Langstroth

beekeepers use these package bees to start colonies because they cannot rely on catching swarms in my area.

hives still prefer to use top-bar hives instead.

Langstroth hive An American design of movable-frame hive, invented in 1852 by the Reverend L Langstroth, who recognised

the importance of bee space and accordingly designed this hive.

As the capital costs of hives continue to rise making apiculture less

Top-bar hives are also ideal for queen production. Queen cell builder

colonies must be manipulated frequently. With top-bar hives one can do this work easily and without heavy

lifting. Smaller top-bar hives holding only two or three combs house little

colonies for mating the new queens.

A pipe connects the bottom of a hive to the outside and serves as the entrance, allowing the bees to forage.

Each hive also rotates on its entrance Beekeeping & Development 58

profitable, or when Langstroth hives are not available, top-bar hives can provide a versatile low-cost solution

with a variety of applications.

In addition to honey production, top-bar hives can generate revenue

Top-bar hive A hive in which the bees build their combs suspended from bars placed across the top of the hive.

The top-bar is so-named after the ‘top-bar’ of a frame. The other three sides of a frame, foundation, wire and nails are not used in top-bar hives.

All photographs Wyatt Mangum

PHOTOGRAPHY

OMPETITION

The Environment and Culture Council of the Excellency the Azuqueca de Henares City Government, through the Municipal Apiculture School, is pleased to announce their First International Photography Competition for Beekeeping.

1.

2.

3.

Photographs should depict apiculture in any of its aspects: art, biology, commerce, customs, flora, hives, products or uses.

Photographs may be in black and white or in colour and at least 13 x 18 cm. Entries will be displayed on supporting boards 40 x 50 cm.

All photographic techniques will be accepted including digital photography.

Photographs must be original and unpublished.

The Competition is open to everyone and to all countries.

The sender must provide a return address and include return postage expenses in case the entry does not win a prize. will become the property of The Excellency

Winning photographs The City Government of Azuqueca de Henares, who may request discs to be provided. original negatives, slides or computer

First prize Second prize

Third prize

500 EUROS 400 EUROS 300 EUROS

There is an additional special prize of 300 Euros for photographs with historical or artistic value. US$0.88 = 1 Euro Please note: If the winner requests payment by currency transfer, these costs will be deducted from the award money.

The judges will be presided over by His Excellency the Mayor and will include representatives from the Environment and Culture Councils, and photography experts.

Send photographs in a sealed envelope (postage paid by the sender) to:

rules.

Participation implies acceptance of the Competition

First Apiculture Photography International Contest, Excellency the City Government of Azuqueca de Henares, 9200 Azuqueca de Henares, Guadalajara, Spain

Closing Date 30 APRIL 2001

IMPORTANT: Do not forget to include the title of the photograph, as well as name and contact details, and a brief profile of the photographer.

Beekeeping & Development 58

IN

RODRIGUE a

by Michael R Duggan, Redhill, UK and Paul Draper, Craft Aid, Rodrigues

Like many remote places in the world, the Island of Rodrigues has its quota of disabled and disadvantaged people. Fortunately, Rodrigues also has a good oceanic climate, plenty of varied bee forage and hardworking Apis mellifera honeybees.

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partially sighted children. The Craft Aid workshops grew and with them, there were more employment

opportunities for the disabled. The long term aim was to diversify, to help pay wages, and when

they were 15 years old, to find employment for the disadvantaged children.

A plan was devised to spread information about good beekeeping practices.Craft Aid decided to start a honey department where disabled

people could use hand extractors, and filters for bottling. The department would also disseminate information to anyone on the Island. A system

was devised for the collection of supers, processing, and return of wet supers the same day. The beekeeper would be paid that day,

instead of perhaps waiting one year.

At the same time

it

was decided to set up

a model teaching apiary with 12 colonies in

It is believed that honeybees of the race

Langstroth hives, all made to the exacting standards of the Craft Aid workshops.

Apis mellifera unicolor were present here for many years before the importation of Italian Apis mellifera queens in the early 1980s.

The aim was: To teach good beekeeping practices;

This coincided with the end of a seven-year drought that had devastated the island.

To run courses, primarily for disabled

Overgrazing compounded the problems.

beekeepers or dependents who had

The bees did weil, and the number of beekeepers rose to between 150 and 180. Much honey was

disabled children; :

produced: Government sources claimed up to 30 tonnes per year. In the 1990s, beekeeping, like ali forms of agriculture, declined and the

To generate funds to pay the wages of

those employed in the honey department.

beekeepers became disheartened. Efforts to form a communal project, funded by the European Union, ran into difficulties: there was no

leadership, no transfer of information and poor management. An attempt to introduce five

Australian honeybee queens was not successful.

In 1989, Craft Aid, a loca! Mauritian organisation, set up a branch in Rodrigues with Paul Draper as Director. Craft Aid began in a

small way making Christmas cards, model boats, and coconut novelties. There were many deaf or partially deaf children destined for a vegetating life at home. Craft Aid started a small school for

them and this has now expanded to also include

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in

1993 recruited Michael Duggan.

He was sent not only as an experienced beekeeper, but also as an active member of REMAP a voluntary organisation of engineers

chameleons,

Death’s head hawk moths, lizards, and termites.

In addition, as it is in the cyclone belt, the Island

who make one-off devices for severely disabled people, where no known commercial solutions

has most years to cope with extreme winds from November to March.For the next two years funds

are available. Michael Duggan soon grasped the

were raised and the honey workshop, store room and bottling room were built. Special hive stands

beekeepers’ problems. Harvested honey was crystallising and fermenting (in tropical countries people often believe that the beekeeper has put

with water basins for the legs (based on a design originated in Trinidad & Tobago) were constructed.

sugar in the honey). The honey would also contain debris and was poorly presented.

The apiary was in a hot site on a riverbank: a sunshade of leaves was devised. However,

Solutions were available to all these problems,

this allowed lizards to drop from the shade on to the stands. A netting sunshade was the answer.

but the Island has communication problems.

Beekeeping & Development 58

Many problems were recognised, including a list of bee predators: ants,

weeks the bees may be transferred to a Langstroth hive. The new beekeeper hands back the nucleus hive and is provided with a loan to buy excluders and supers as required. The new beekeeper pays the loan back in reasonable installments, from the revenue earned from the sale of honey. This gives the realisation that money is being earned. The Craft Aid honey department processes all the honey produced

A young beekeeper (with one hand) had received training and twelve colonies were raised in 1998.

to the accepted standards of clarity, moisture, labelling and bottling. Craft Aid has no difficulty in selling this honey. The beekeepers are paid

Worthwhile income ensued because it is possible to have four honey harvests each season.

Traditional beekeepers in Rodrigues have just one box per colony and pollen and larvae are often extracted or squeezed along with the honey.

The Craft Aid apiary uses queen excluders, each hive has 2-3 supers, 1% brood boxes and the extracted honey has a moisture content of

and Craft Aid covers expenses. More part-time disabled workers are employed at peak times.

less than 20%.

required. By good fortune, the UN 1% to Development Fund made a donation in 1998

The response by the Island’s traditional beekeepers has been disappointing. They still use rum bottles as honey containers and are not too fussy about cleanliness. Honey is over-heated to eliminate

to enable the mode! apiary to be extended along the riverbank. Five new stands with water basins

crystallisation and is transported in old plastic drums. The beekeepers do not test for humidity with a refractometer.

colonies from which good queens are being produced by the temporary removal of a queen from a mother colony. The entire project has

were built and fenced for protection from goats and humans. The stands now hold five mother

so far proved successful. It encourages a high standard of beekeeping and better production of good quality honey.

The project also encourages disadvantaged families, often in desperate situations, but above all, it produces income. It has been proved that a young beekeeper can earn the equivalent of two months’ wages with the honey produced in the first year.

One of the essentials is the supply of good foundation. Craft Aid has developed this and many beekeepers are buying it, sometimes

The beekeeper has an assistant who is also disabled but can do work like filling water basins and painting. A supervisor has been trained and 26 week courses have been run, not only for disabled students, but for outsiders as well.

cutting the sheets to use as starters.

Wax production, foundation and candle making are also learnt and all help the funds.

About 45 other students have attended the courses and a high percentage has taken up the challenge to start beekeeping. The Craft Aid workers benefited in financial terms as these ‘outsiders’ paid cash for the basic equipment, site preparations and five-frame nuclei. To service this, a good supply of young, mated queens was

At the end of each course students are provided with a five frame nucleus and a laying queen if they have prepared a site at their home with a metal stand, water basin and cattle fence. in the nucleus colony rapidly expand into a five-frame nucleus ‘super’. In a couple of

The bees

Rodrigues Island lies in the Indian Ocean, 560 km north-east of Mauritius. It forms part of the Republic of Mauritius along with Agalega and the St Brandon Group.

It is

population is largely engaged in subsistence farming and fishing. The Government is the biggest employer, with about 2000 staff. There is much

be reached only by air or sea from Mauritius.

unemployment, especially among young people leaving school. Many go to Mauritius and create

a

African population of 32,000. People are mainly of origin, although there are descendents of Europeans, Chinese and Indian traders. Whereas Mauritius is

pockets of Rodriguan poverty there, living in shanty towns on the outskirts of Port Louis.

The work of Craft Aid focuses on the needs of the handicapped and the very poor by creating employment. At present Craft Aid

predominantly Indian, Rodrigues is 99% Creole.

The official language is English but most people communicate in French Creole. Mauritius has

employs 45 full-time, full-waged people, of whom about 35 are handicapped. It is the third largest private sector employer on the island.

on sugar, developed a dynamic economy based tourism, a garment-manufacturing sector,

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to be free of bee diseases, with no signs of Varroa. |f disease is introduced it will be

devastating for the island and its economy.

and banking and offshore activities. By contrast, Rodrigues has not developed an economy, and the

administered from Mauritius and can

The Island is 13 km long and 6.5 km wide, with

Two big unknowns remain. Firstly, what happens when the next cyclone hits the Island?

The Craft Aid system includes methods for lashing down the hives, but what about the following season when all the trees have been damaged? Secondly, Rodrigues bees appear

PORT MATHURIN

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Zooming in on Rodrigues (Michael Duggan) B&D 31 (1994) Apicarousel — the carousel management of honeybees (Wayne Kristiansen) B&D 14 (1989) Thomas Raffaut works in the honey bottling and processing plant and helps service hives off-season.He (an accident victim) and his family are successful beekeepers.

At Bigarde, two beekeepers with physical handicaps inspect their hives. Michael Duggan looks on. The water basin and blocks to keep off predators are constructed and made within the budget limits of the beekeeper.

At Camp du Roi, in the Craft-Aid model teaching apiary courses are held for trainee beekeepers with priority for the handicapped or those who have a handicapped family member.

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Eric, Cilan, Camille, Peddy and Jennie extracting honey at the Craft Aid department, Port Mathurin.

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Prize winners at the National Honey Show 2000.

Eric, Jennie, Benjamin, Marie-Claude, Camille and Paul Draper.

Photoghaphs

Craft Aid Beekeeping & Development 58

NES AROUN ETHIOPIA

GHANA

SWITZERLAND

Participants from all over

The Director of Friends of Bee Enterprise, Mr T A Quaye, sent in this picture taken during their one-week Seminar, showing participants busy at work in the apiary. The Seminar was sponsored by Tepa District Council to help local farmers who cultivate cocoa and maize learn how to augment their income through beekeeping.

Mr Pittier-Raid sent this photograph of a colony of his bees living inside a transparent acrylic hive.

the country met when

The Ethiopian Beekeepers’ Association held its Annual Conference in August 2000.

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Beekeeping Research Centre and the Ministry of Agriculture presented information on floral calendars, seasonal

management of bee colonies in

top-bar hives and frame

hives, and the development of beekeeping in Ethiopia. |

found the Conference very

interesting and encouraging.

Abrham Tesfaye

INDIA The killing of the Indian honeybee Apis cerana

by Thai sacbrood disease and the failure of the Indian scientific community to control it or to produce disease resistant varieties, resulted in the introduction of the European bee

Apis mellifera into various parts of India.

Several government and non-government agencies encouraged the action without realising the far-reaching consequences.

Eventually Apis mellifera may out-compete Apis cerana resulting in the disappearance of this indigenous bee. This conclusion can

Buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) is one of the important cereal crops belonging to the

Family Polygonaceae and is indigenous to Asia.

It is grown in many States of India, especially in drought areas. The crop is grown in Assam and iS gaining momentum in production. Grain from this crop is an important source of high quality protein and carbohydrates. It is mixed with

wheat flour, and is also used for gluten-free diets. Flowers attract bees to their nectar and this enhances pollination. An attempt has been made to evaluate the effect of Apis cerana in

be reached from the experiences in Korea and Thailand, where the native species were marginalised after the introduction of

the pollination, seed set and yield of buckwheat.

In Russia buckwheat has long been considered

Apis mellifera. The decline of Apis cerana harmfully affects the agricultural sector that is

An experiment was conducted in India to

the backbone of the Indian economy because of Apis cerana’s vital role in the pollination of plants.

As Apis mellifera adapts to the Indian climate there will be a fundamental change, and already changes have been observed in its behaviour.

as a major source of honey.

investigate the effect of Apis cerana on seed set and yield of buckwheat. Buckwheat spikes per plant, seeds per spike, percentage of filled seed,

and weight of grain were found to be higher in bee pollinated trials than in open and

and it has become increasingly aggressive.

self-pollinated experiments. There was significant difference in yield in bee pollinated treatment

The worst and far reaching consequence of the introduction of Apis mellifera is the method

over “open” and “without bees” pollination control treatments. The foraging activity of

adopted by the beekeepers to control the birds that feed on honeybees - indiscriminately

Apis cerana showed the maximum number

shooting them down. This will destroy the

A Rahman & S Rahman

fragile ecosystem.

Source: indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 2000

Apis mellifera’s non-aggressive character disappeared

V J Sebastian Beekeeping & Development 58

of foragers recorded from

1500-1600 hours.

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ORLD

THE CAMEROON

Some of the 800 students at St Joseph's College recently decided to form a Beekeeping Club. FAAFNET is helping them to identify bee

Bishop Rogan College apiary has 50 hives,

plants to grow around the campus and apiaries.

20 currently occupied by bees. Three staff

Some students from rural areas who have

members underwent training and are now

experience of traditional beekeeping are aware

working with FAAFNET (Forestry, Agriculture,

already of how interesting and lucrative

Animal and Fishery Network) towards the

beekeeping is. They intend to introduce their

400 students as

parents to better management techniques to

goal of enough honey for

a substitute for white sugar in the refectory.

increase their family income and add to their own education funds. FAAFNET are helping

The students recently demonstrated beekeeping during a ceremony that took place on campus.

further by passing on B&D to the College.

Lyonga William Mumbe

SUDAN and UGANDA

Yoana Baptist Agro-Enterprises Development Co-operation is working in southern Sudan and northern Uganda using beekeeping as a weapon against poverty. Communities can

acquire self-sustainability. In northern Uganda 300,000 Sudanese refugees live in camps.

The reasons we are promoting beekeeping are: The area has a good potential for honey production;

Acquiring beekeeping skills is not expensive training costs are low and it takes only a short time; Beekeeping requires little land compared with other agro enterprises; Materials and tools are very cheap - a farmer can start with 10 hives at a cost of US$150;

LIBYA

In Sudan and Uganda there is a lot of forest wood: if the local communities are

Ahmed Zawi wrote to us using this

provided with carpentry tools, materials and skills they can make their own hives

highly appropriate postal message!

from local materials.

We are working with two groups. The first group is in a refugee camp in northern Uganda where the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology is organising training for 57 participants

(36 women and 21 men). The second group with 157 members is in Sudan. Membership is expected to increase as many more people realise

THAILAND Stamps depicting Thai honeybees species produced to commemorate the 4th AAA/7th IBRA Conference in March

2000.

Left to right: Apis andreniformis, Apis florea, Apis cerana and Apis dorsata.

the economic attraction of beekeeping.

We are planning to set up a carpentry workshop at a cost of US$15,000 to purchase tool boxes, generators, sewing machines and timber cutters, and to employ workshop personnel for six months.

We aim to produce 10,000 hives every year and

each person will get 10 hives. If this is achieved it means that in a year 1000 people will acquire

self-sustainability through beekeeping.

NIGERIA We have the responsibility of mobilising Nigerians aged 20-30 years who are graduates of polytechnics and universities for a one-year compulsory National Service. “Community Development Service” is an important segment of National Service. We have a fresh initiative in Community Development Service called Integrated Rural Development that includes the promotion of beekeeping. We have also established a Beekeepers’ Association.

- Head of Community Development Service Department, Tosin

Quadri

Olasdejo Akanbi Beekeepers’ Association of Nigeria

at a rate of US$1 per kilo.

A

market exists also

Uganda for both honey and wax.

With our proposals we hope to lead the market. in Kenya and

Thousands of ears in the world have heard about

Llorin

This Centre is located in Ladkoke Akintola University of Technology, Obomoso, and is a project of Nigeria. The Centre focuses on training, research and by the Beekeepers’ Association African the Apis mellifera adansonii. Our objectives include with honeybee development education on the need for sustainability in beekeeping, and encouraging co-operative work among beekeepers and honey hunters.

Recently a potential buyer from the USA visited southern Sudan and Uganda and bought over 15 tonnes of honey from the local communities

the war in Sudan but have not seen the suffering of the people. This is the time for you to realise

that what you have heard is the real fact of the situation and this is the time for you to join us (Yoahoney) in alleviating their suffering.

Jackson Maku — Yaohoney, Kenya If you would like to help Yachoney with their plans please contact them c/o Bees for Development

Beekeeping & Development 58

PEAEFUL Defensive bees are inconvenient in beekeeping.

They are time-consuming because you need to defend yourself against the stings. Every sting is a loss because a bee dies after it has stung.

must behave in the same way, “If you make a mistake you could seriously damage the

by Eigil Holm, Gedved, Denmark

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patient.” Since heard his advice work in the same way and my bees like it. |

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It is also a nuisance to need to dress in veil

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and hat and to cover your body completely so that the bees cannot sting you.

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Many beekeepers dream of having peaceful bees that they can examine without any

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problems. They do exist. In Denmark and Sweden, many beekeepers examine their

.

hives without using protective clothing.

The bees do not sting and they continue their activities when the beekeeper takes out the frames and looks at them in the sun.

around its nose and eyes. Consequently, these were also the targets the bees would attack when beekeepers opened the hives.

How can bees become peaceful? It may be accomplished in several ways. The first

not defensive in that way. Primitive queen rearing can take some defensiveness away.

thing to notice is that some bee colonies are defensive, whilst other colonies are peaceful.

This points towards a natural variation that could be used through selection, as explained below.

Nowadays the descendants of these bees are

When you start new colonies use queen cells from the most peaceful colonies. It helps, You should be polite when you visit the bees.

First, you have to “knock on the door”, which

you do by sending a little smoke in through the opening of the hive. Wait a minute before opening the hive. Perhaps a little more smoke

should be used. The smoke must be cool.

You can feel its temperature by blowing it on your own skin: cool smoke is white; hot

smoke is blue. After that you examine each frame as necessary. Cover the frames that have been examined - the darkness makes the

a thunderstorm is near, the bees will often

clothes, take the sting away immediately with your fingernail and blow smoke on the spot to disguise the scent. The sting is alive and it releases scents called pheromones that call the other bees to react defensively.

asked him why

and he said that during an operation you Beekeeping & Development 58

drones, which means peaceful crossed with peaceful. If you continue this through two or three generations, all the new queens will make peaceful colonies.

We do not know why it is so easy to create peaceful bees in northern Europe, and we do not know if the technique can be used in Africa or America. The bees must not become so peaceful that they cannot defend themselves.

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also used to supply drones.

island or valley in a small cage with 1-2 dl (enough to fill a cup) of worker bees, and no drones. The queens will mate with the local

clean clothes. Your body should also be clean.

If you are stung on your skin or on your

never made a mistake.

queens with offspring from peaceful colonies.

The colonies on the island or in the valley are

Bees recall odours and scents very well (remember that flowers use scent to attract

by the weather. If you examine your hives in a strong wind, during a rainstorm, or when

|

distance), or you can use an isolated valley.

There you place peaceful colonies, or if there are colonies there already, you replace their

The beekeeper takes new queens from peaceful colonies and sends them to the

bees), and some odours and scents make them defensive. The best thing to do is to use

The behaviour of the beekeeper is also very important. have learned much from my doctor to whom taught beekeeping. His actions are always planned and he never makes a sudden movement. In fact, he has

generations. You need an island at least 3 km from the coast (bees cannot fly over such a

bees feel they are inside the hive and continue their work.

Another point is that even peaceful bees can sometimes be defensive. This can be caused

become defensive. Certainly inclement weather can cause a disturbance inside the hive when the roof is taken off.

but not very much if the bees are allowed to mate freely. It has been demonstrated that you can make bees peaceful in two or three

The bees of northern Europe used to be very defensive. They had to protect themselves against bears that would use their claws to open the hollow trees with the bees inside.

The bees attacked the bear where they could

Some defensiveness against their enemies is necessary, especially in Africa where honey badgers, birds, wasps and other insects eat bees. It is also good that bad beekeepers are treated as enemies.

AND INDIGENOUS HONEYBEES

by Faroog Ahmed and the Project Team ICIMOD, Nepal

Poverty and fragility are two major constraints to development in the Hindu Kush Himalayas

(HKH). Indigenous honeybees can play

a very important role in addressing both issues; they pollinate important mountain crops and, at the

same time, produce high value bee products.

The indigenous honeybees include Apis dorsata,

fx

Apis florea and Apis laboriosa, (whose products

wt

are collected, but these bees cannot be kept

it

in hives); and the native species Apis cerana, which is traditionally used in beekeeping.

The HKH region is also home to many species of stingless bees, bumble bees, and solitary

We hope that we will see:

bees. Traditionally bees have been kept for the

harvest the benefits of the Himalayan honeybees, we first need to properly understand

production of honey and other bee products.

But as farmers turn more towards cash crops,

their important role in conserving biodiversity and increasing farm productivity. The aim of

Apis cerana as an income-generating

especially fruit and vegetables, there is an increasing recognition of their important role

the ICIMOD programme is to develop a better

increased income for communities involved

understanding of these issues through documenting information and through

in beekeeping and honey hunting;

in pollination.

Apis cerana is part of the natural heritage of mountain communities. However this bee is not always welcomed by commercial beekeepers and farmers, particularly in certain areas of the

HKH, because of its lower honey yield and more difficult behaviour. Here, as in many regions of the world, survival of the native species is threatened by Apis mellifera, which has been introduced on a large scale. But Apis cerana offers potential benefits that are still not always recognised by farmers and development workers.

In order to ‘

participatory action research. Beekeeping primarily benefits the landless and marginalised farmers

who have limited options to support their livelinoods. Thus beekeeping is an important

component in ICIMOD's approach to promoting the development of an economically and environmentally sound mountain ecosystem, and improving the living standards of mountain people.

The full project title is ‘Indigenous Honeybees of the Himalayas: a Community-based Approach

for Conserving Biodiversity and Increasing Farm

an increase in the number of farmers raising

activity;

increased farm income through pollination services; and a strengthened institutional capacity

of bee-related organisations in the

HKH region.

The programme involves detailed documentation, action research, training, and extension through

collaborative mechanisms with local and regional partners (in Bhutan, China, India, Pakistan, as well as in Nepal). We are particularly concerned that we maintain a gender-balanced

and community-based participatory approach.

In the next issue of B&D we will be telling you more about these activities.

Productivity’. The major aim of the project is to promote sustainable management of

Apis cerana, and of other indigenous honeybees that can be adopted by the communities in the HKH region, as a contribution towards the conservation of biodiversity, improvement of farm productivity, and increase in farm income.

Our main activities are concerned with:

ICIMOD is the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, an international organisation devoted to the development of the Hindu Kush Himalayas region. ICIMOD is located in Kathmandu, Nepal. Read more about ICIMOD at

www. icimod.org.np

Apis cerana selection and management;

Apis cerana has an essential role to play

integration of pollination in farming systems;

in

indigenous honeybees and honey hunting

development in these remote areas in terms of pollination. Studies have shown that there are

communities;

many different sub-species and locally adapted ecotypes, some of which may offer clear

building; and

commercial and/or environmental advantages.

training, extension, networking, and capacity

&

marketing and micro-enterprise development.

See Bookshelf page 14 for details of ICIMOD publications Beekeeping & Development 58

PESTICIDE ds ACTION a& wu?

NETWORKUK

you would like to support our work, or subscribe to our journal Pesticides News, please contact: David Buffin, PAN UK, 49 Effra Road, London, SW2 1BZ, UK Tel +44 (0)20 7274 8895 Fax +44 (0)20 7274 9084 E-mail admin@pan-uk.org Visit our website at www.pan-uk.org If

MALAYSIA

SPAIN

Symposium on Stakeholders of the

XX Feria Apicola de Castilla La Mancha (XX Beekeeping Fair)

Giant Honeybees

Further details from: Dr Makhdzir Mardan, BEENET

22-25 March 2001, Guadalajara Further details from: José L Herguedas de Miguel,

ASIA, Plant Protection Department, Universiti Pertanian Malaysia, 43400 UPM, Serdang, Selangor DE

Juan Diges Antén 25 - 2°, 19003 Guadalajara Fax (+34) 949 218 476

March 2002, Pedu Lake

ARGENTINA Control de Calidad de Miel, Propoleos y Cera

(Quality contro! of honey, propolis and wax)

14-18 May 2001, Santiago del Estero Further details from: Prof E M Bianchi, CEDIA, Av Belgrano 1912, CP 4200 Santiago del Estero E-mail cedia@unse.edu.ar

E-mail makhdzir@imedia.upm.edu.my

UNITED KINGDOM

or makhdzir@agri.upm.edu.my

British Beekeepers’ Association Convention

RUSSIA Intermiod 2001 2nd Exhibition on Beekeeping

28 April 2001, Stoneleigh Further details from: BBKA, NAC, Stoneleigh,

INDIA

12-16 September 2001, Moscow

Warwickshire, CV8 21LZ

6th Asian Apicultural Association Conference

Further details from: Exhibition Complex,

E-mail bbka@bbka.demon.co.uk

January/February 2002, Bangalore

Nakhimovsky prospect 24, 117218 Moscow

Further details from: 6th AAA Conference,

E-mail expostroy@expostroy.ru

c/o Century Foundation,

#193 Double Road

(KMJ Education Trust Building), Indiranagar 2nd

SLOVENIA XXXVIII Apimondia International Apicultural Congress

Stage, Bangalore 560 038

24-29 August 2003, Ljubljana

UNITED KINGDOM/TANZANIA

E-mail cenfound@sparrl.com

Further details from: Cebelarska Zveza Slovenije,

Beekeeping in Rural Development Training Course

Cankarjeva 3, 1000 Ljubljana

JAPAN XIV International Congress of the International Union for the Study of Social Insects (IUSSI)

28 July

—

3 August 2002

Further details from: Professor Seigo Higashi, Graduate School of Environmental Earth Science,

Hokkaido University, Sapporo O60 0810 Fax

(+81) 11706 4867

www.coop.hokudai.ac.jp/gakkai/iussi2002/

Beekeeping & Development 58

Fax

(+386) 611 261 335

E-mail cebelarska.zveza.slo@siol.net

SOUTH AFRICA

XXXVII Apimondia International Apicultural Congress

28 October

July 2001, Cardiff University and Njiro Wildlife Research Centre Further details from: Bees for Development If you

want details of your conference, workshop

or meeting to be included here write to: —

1

November 2001, Durban

Bees for Development,

Further details from: Apimondia 2001, Conference

Troy, Monmouth,

Pianners, PO Box 82, Irene 0062

Fax

Fax

(+27) 12 667 3680 www.apimondia2001.com

NP25 4AB, UK

+44 (0)16007 16167

E-mail busy@planbee.org.uk

oa

DOMBEYA TORRIDA «ras Bees collect pollen and nectar throughout the day from the flowers of Dombeya torrida.

Recommended for planting to increase

|

|

|

honey production.

sation, sargowsie,

&

x

Can be planted from seed but needs careful attention. The seed is not easy to obtain and it is easier to plant out wildlings.

|

Can be coppiced, lopped or pollarded.

Dombeya goetzenii, Dombeya faucicola, Dombeya schimperiana

Sterculiaceae

erene) Dombeya torrida is a forest tree that can grow 25 m high. It is often found growing along forest edges at altitudes of 1800-3300 m in to

Afromontane forest. It also persists in forest patches and gallery forests and is often seen as a single tree in mountain grassland and

farmland. Dombeya torrida is found in East Africa and in Burundi, DR Congo,

Rwanda and Sudan where rainfall ranges from

1000-2000 mm

per year. It is a

common understorey tree in Ethiopia.

LEAVES: Broadly ovate, base deeply cordate, apex acuminate, margin serrate to entire, 4-25 by 3-15 cm, densely pubescent, especially on the reddish veins.

FLOWERS: White,

red at the base inside, with branched stalks; petals 11-21 mm long. in umbels

FRUIT:

Round

hairy.

and

The wood is hard and heawy, easy to work and therefore suitable for turnery and house construction, but it is not durable in the ground. It is used for poles and making tool hand! andes, and d Is is suitable for firewood .

The bark fibre is used for making cloth and sui

i

rope. Fallen leaves produce good mulch for soil improvement. Leaves are browsed by cattle. Root bark is used for wound dressing.

Rwanda the tree is used for soil conservation and as a support for hives.

In

The SEPASAL database and enquiry service is about useful ‘wild’ and semi-domesticated plants of tropical and subtropical drylands.

‘Useful’ means plants that humans can eat, use as medicines, feed to animals, make things from, use as fuel and for other purposes.

SEPASAL is maintained by the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in London, UK and is published on their website at .

www.rbgkew. org. uk/ceb/sepasal/internet/

NEW BOOK! Read about Paul Latham’s new book in Bookshelf page 14

.

FICHTL,R; ADIA (1994) Honeybee Flora of Ethiopia.

References

BEENTIJE,HJ

|

(1994) Kenya Trees, Shrubs and Lianas.

National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya.

BEKELE-TESEMMA,A; BIRNIE,A; TENGNAS,B (1993) Usefiil Trees and Shrubs for Ethiopia. Regional Soil Conservation Unit/SIDA, Uppsala, Sweden.

EGLI,A; KALINGANIRE,A (1988) Les Arbres et Arbustes Agroforestiers au Rwanda, Institut des Sciences Agronomique du Rwanda, Butare, Rwanda.

In French.

Margraf Verlag, Weikersheim, Germany.

ROCHELEAU,D; WEBER,F; FIELD-JUMA,A (1988) Agroforestry in dryland Africa. ICRAF, Nairobi, Kenya.

SEPASAL (1999) Survey of economic plants for arid and semi-arid lands (SEPASAL) database.

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK.

SEYANLJ H (1991) Dombeya in Africa: Opera Botanica Belgica 2. National Botanic Garden of Belgium, Meise, Belgium.

Beekeeping & Development 58-

Income we receive from orders supports the Bees for Development Information Service for beekeepers in developing countries. Please buy all your bee reading and viewing from us!

A complete list and description of all the books, posters and videos available from Bees for Development is on our website at www.planbee.org.uk. Books are in English unless stated otherwise.

Crop pollination by bees

Beekeeping trainer resource book

Keith Delaplane and Daniel Mayer

Aniruddha N Shukla

—

352 pages Hardback

Ady PEAY

2000

Available from Bees for Development —————

price 65

guide covering

aspects of

ayyHY

oe

Resource

ogy’

flowers interact.

There are warnings about the

vulnerability of crop pollinators and how dangerous the world can be to them, in

important bee plants

Nepali

Paul Latham

AVailable from ICIMOD,

3226,

2000

~*~

84 pages

A4 spiral bound with

US$10 (ICIMOD

colour photographs on almost every

US$15 (developing

_.

—

Kathmandu, Nepal.

Member countries),

pollination and how bees and

- 162 pages

PO Box

UUW

practical and research-based

In

d

a

ra sie

ont

__Bevteeyina

Order code D130

This book is

2000

Beekeeping in Bas Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo with particular reference to some

page. Available

countries), US$20

from Bees for

(developed countries)

Development

An illustrated reference guide for

price 36

beekeepers, students, trainers and development workers.

Order code L115

This manual is

Chapter the history of development of beekeeping

the result of a beekeeping project to

in Nepal.

and the planting of useful bee plants

Chapter 2 Classification of honeybees, division of work and different

in

from a world perspective.

The 51 chapters also discuss honeybee biology, bumblebees, alkali bees, alfalfa

development stages.

humid, tropical regions of Africa. In the

Chapter 3 Basics needs of honeybees.

Chapter 4 Different types of hives used

early 1980s, the Salvation Army provided beekeeping training and by

in Nepal.

1990, almost 400 beekeepers were

terms of pesticide use and bee diseases.

Much of the book relates to pollination

leaf cutting bees, mason bees and other soil nesting bees; plus individual chapters on important crops including apple,

beans, cotton, tomatoes and soybean.

Three appendices cover: bees and beekeeping books and supplies in the UK, Europe, South Africa, Canada and USA; a

sample pollination agreement contract;

and a table of pesticides.

Pollination

management of mountain crops through beekeeping Uma Partap

This publication is now available in Nepali. For our review see B&D 53

page 10. Price 15

Order code P165

ES Beekeeping & Development 58

1

The importance of bees and

encourage beekeeping, conservation

mentioned can be found throughout the

producing a honey surplus to sell of

Chapter 5 Beekeeping equipment.

7 kg each. Today 1000 beekeepers

Chapter 6 Apiary management including

with 2000 hives annually harvest 14 tonnes of honey.

absconding, colony dividing, feeding, colony inspection and establishing apiaries.

Chapter 7 Bee products

—

honey, wax,

Bas Congo Province. Many plants

The majority of the beekeepers have

pollen, venom, royal jelly, and propolis.

only one or two hives but the

Chapter 8 Enemies of bees and protecting bees from pesticides.

supplementary income from the honey they sell is valuable.

Chapter 9 Honeybee diseases and their control.

The project was part funded by DFID-UK and Christian Aid (UK).

‘Chapter 10 Bee colony migration for '

maximum honey production.

Chapter 11 Importance of pollination, the bee flora of Nepal, preparation of a bee forage calendar.

Chapter 12 Model examination questions.

Also by Paul Latham Beekeeping and some honeybee plants in Umalila, Southern Tanzania English and Swahili versions, each 33 Order codes L105 and L110

Co-operative success — what makes group enterprise succeed Malcolm Harper and A K Roy 2000

- 141

pages.

Paperback Available from Bees for Development price 15

Order code H145

The definition of a co-operative '

is an organisation with the

majority ownership

in the

hands of its customers, suppliers or employees. This book identifies factors that are associated with successful co-operatives.

It

will assist those promoting group enterprise

in

selecting situations where the co-operative

has a high chance of success; and in advising,

assisting or managing existing groups.

Initially the study focussed on groups in Orissa State, India, however the case studies

include co-operatives from Bangladesh, Nepal and other areas of India. The original

study on which the findings of the book are based was funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the Ford Foundation (India).

Bees for Development Finding sponsorship for B&D subscriptions is one way Bees for Development supports beekeepers in developing countries.

First West African Bee Research Seminar

We especially want to help those who have no other sources of assistance.

We will donate copies of the Proceedings from this Seminar to

Dear Friends It has been nice networking with you in the past year. My acknowledgments and thanks go to Mrs Thomas in the UK for paying for

meetings concerning beekeeping in Africa. Copies also available for sale at 20.

i

my subscription to B&D in 2000. lam a conservationist and recognise that local people who do not see any direct

“fem

commercial benefit from our forests, are burning them to ashes. We introduced beekeeping and honey marketing as a means to ensure sustainable conservation of the

encouraging to see it working: forests that had been reduced to stunted forests.

It is

|

trading company dealing in the marketing of pure honey and wax. Our honey is very nice. am looking for both technical and |

.

Beekeeping Handbook Another useful publication with information on how to work

with African bees. Copies also available for sale at 8.

pee Keeping ook

\ \

Hand

\

shrubsare now catching up. Beekeepers put their hives in the forest and nobody burns or cuts down the trees. have started a local

“Sees

‘

Plus we have a selection of other publications that will be sent if appropriate to the event being held.

financial assistance. Anyone who is interested to helpcan please contact me c/o

Bees for Development.

Sekiku Joseph, Karagwe, Tanzania

If

you are working for an organisation with

some resources available, and would like to If you represent a beekeeping project or group

order a Workshop Box the delivery cost is 50

in a developing country that has no access to external funding, then you are most welcome

per 25 participants. Details for ordering and

to request items. If our funding permits we will send you a ‘Workshop Box’ containing

some of the following:

ways to pay are shown on the left.

NB: You must inform us at least three months ahead of the date of your meeting!

Copies of editions of B&D An excellent resource for new beekeepers.

Give us an estimate of the number

ATTENTION

of participants you anticipate.

When writing proposals remember to include an allowance for publications and B&D subscriptions in your project budget. We can help with expert advice and supply you with the

best, appropriate beekeeping library. You could prepare a proposal and submit it to businesses

and funding organisations in your area, or to

your local British Council office, requesting support for your library.

Information charts

Remember also to include participation costs for

We have some

beekeeping meetings. The Apimondia Congress in South Africa this October will provide an

information charts

available for free distribution including our famous ‘Promote

Beekeeping in Rural

excellent and unique opportunity for beekeepers to meet with others working on beekeeping

development projects worldwide.

For details see Look Ahead, page 12

Development’ poster.

Beekeeping & Development 58 43

APIMONDIA o

o

Y

ZOoOoRB PDS

XXXVIL INTERNATIONAL APICULTURAL CONGRESS of the

FEDERATION OF nes BEEKEEPERS’ eeKrenene ASSOCIATIONS

Beekeepers in developing countries (only!) may pay their subscriptio tO BXV in pure beeswax or with pure bees wax candles. |

28 October ~ November 2001 International Convention Centre, Durban, South Africa 1

,

South Africa has great pleasure in inviting beekeepers and members of the bee community from around the world to share in the celebration that is

APIMONDIA 2001.

Candles are of higher value than beesw ax so only 2 kg of candles are needed to buy one subscrip tion, and the lower weight of candles will also give savings in postage costs. :

5 :

or 2 kg candles for o 1e subscription beeswax or 10 kg candles for ten kg subscriptions to one address

kg beeswax

25

if you are interested in attending APIMONDIA 2001 please contact the Organisers who will send you a copy of the final announcement containing all the details you need.

We look forward to meeting you in South Africa!

Correspondence and Enquiries:

APIMONDIA 2001 CONFERENCE PLANNERS Box 82 (66 Queen Street), rene 0062, South Africa Tel +27 (0) 12 667 3681 Fax +27 (0) 12 667 3680 E-mail confplan@iafrica.com Congress website www.apimondia200 1.com P

RESEARCH GRANTS The International Foundation for Science (IFS) provides support to young scientists in developing countries by awarding research grants and providing grantees with additional services such as travel grants and purchasing

Relative government ministries and administrations UNO agencies and the European Community NGO specializing in rural development Public and private agricultural establishments Beekeeping co-operatives, companies or individuals Training institutes, manufacturers, etc

assistance.

Grants awarded to a maximum value of US$12,000 for |-3 years, may be renewed twice and are intended for purchase of equipment, expendable supplies and literature.

m@

m

Applicants must be citizens of, and carry out research in, a developing country. They should also work at a university or national research institution in a developing country (countries in Europe including Cyprus and Turkey, or the former Soviet Union do not qualify).

Applicants must be under 40 years of age (under 30 for Chinese applicants), and at the start of their research career.

Candidates must already possess a higher academic degree, which should be at least an MSc or equivalent.

ACTIVITIES Feasibility studies, project supervision and evaluation Comprehensive supervision of beekeeping development plans Market studies, technological know-how Help in establishing co-operatives, laboratories, extraction and processing plants, queen rearing mating or instrumental insemination stations Creation of software, audio-visual material, promotional material or press articles seminars, translations etc @ Testing of new equipment and technologies # Ala carte training (beekeeping and/or computer) eo

m

eee

PARTIES CONCERNED

@

IFS supports projects dealing with the management, use and conservation of biological resources. Activities are organised into six research areas: animal production, aquatic resources, crop science, food science, forestry/agroforestry, and natural products.

For further information and application forms in either English or French contact

ifs

NEW SERVICE Web sites - Creation and hosting services Virtual Beekeeping Gallery’ Po

INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR SCIENCE Grev Turegatan 19, SE-114 38 STOCKHOLM, Sweden

Tel: +46 8 545 818 00 Fax: +46 8 $45 818 01 E-mail: info@ifs.se

en)

Se PCCP

Beekeeping & Development is published quarterly by Fax +44 (0) 16007 16167 E-mail Telephone Website www.planbee.org.uk Printed on environmentally friendly paper. ISSN 1369

MEM

Sec

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EERE eee

yes

Troy, Monmouth, NP25 4AB, UK 9555

Bees for Development 2001

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