Original Story Published by: Patrick Fort, www.phys.org
Photo Source: Phys
(Above) Honey is harvested only at night as the local bees are very aggressive .
Night has just fallen in central Ivory Coast and the hour has come for two men, venturing forth in protective suits, veils and gloves, to steal honey from their bees.
The art of beekeeping has spread swiftly in Assounvoue, in the heart of the world's top cocoa producer.
Farmers started taking up honey-making to supplement their income—and then also realised their primary crops did better when pollinated by the bees. Word of the twin benefits spread fast.
"In West Africa, you have to harvest the honey at night," says French beekeeper Sebastien Gavini, co-director of a firm called Le Bon Miel de Cote d'Ivoire (The fine honey of Ivory Coast).
"These bees are savage and aggressive—they don't let you go. By working at night, you don't get pursued by the bees, which means we don't put people at risk."
West African bees are "wilder and barely used to contact with human beings," Gavini explains.
He contrasts these characteristics with milder-natured European bees which have been kept for centuries—and sadly are now threatened in many areas by insecticides.
To read the full article, visit www.phys.org.
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