Building the Stingless Bee Cage

What is a “Stingless Bee Cage?” you may ask.

It is a protective structure that houses hives of stingless, Melipona bees! The cage has many benefits, but its prime purpose is to keep the hives safe from predators. While it keeps intruders out, the screened walls still allow bees to fly freely.

Maasai Honey is pleased to announce the completion of their first apiary cage dedicated exclusively to stingless bees! This exciting project was sponsored by the Greenwich World Hunger Association (Greenwich, Connecticut, USA). The cage will provide a home for current stingless hives and also allow Maasai Honey to expand their capacity for stingless beekeeping.

As their name implies, these bees do not sting. They are also very small in size and black in color, almost resembling a small fly. Stingless bees are vastly different than the common honeybee; in fact, these insects come from an entirely different family! Scientifically they are classified into the Melipona family of insects. Melipona bees produce a unique honey that is more liquid in nature than stinging bee honey. Known for its health benefits, stingless bee honey has sour notes and hints of citrus. It is said to treat the common cold and in Tanzania it is traditionally used as a remedy for stomach ulcers.

The health benefits of stingless honey make it highly desired and valuable on the Tanzanian market. Although each colony produces only a small amount of honey; it is typically sold at twice the price of regular honey! Aside from the economic benefits, keeping stingless colonies also helps to preserve this unique indigenous bee species that is at risk due to deforestation.

The completed stingless bee cage! Pictured here are Maasai Honey beekeepers Aziz Zombe (left) and Salimu Mshana (right).

Keeping stingless bees has many benefits. These include not only the conservation of Melipona bees, but also the production of stingless honey. Ecologically, the small size of Melipona bees makes them extremely important pollinators (they are literally able to fit into tiny flowers that larger bees cannot!) Greater production of stingless honey will also allow Maasai Honey to increase sales, with 100% of profits reinvested back into the project. Thus, the stingless apiary will support our women beneficiaries, local staff, as well as the local bees!

The cage was constructed with a stone foundation and cement bricks for the base, then wooden timbers with metal screening for the upper section. Inside there are wooden shelves, one lower and one upper, for holding hives. The cage is tightly fitted with a sheet metal roof (to keep out even climbing predators!) Construction took place in April and May and the cage was completed in the beginning of June 2021.

In order to celebrate this exciting development in local beekeeping and wildlife conservation, the District Commissioner of Ngorongoro, Rashid Taka Mfaume, was invited to a ceremony for the opening of the cage.

This was a wonderful event for Maasai Honey, as the District Commissioner was able to learn about project activities, plus tour the new bee cage. He discussed with staff beekeepers the methods of stingless beekeeping and the benefits of their unique honey. Overall he was very supportive of the project and the education that it is providing to local residents.

Now that construction of the bee cage is complete, the next step is to add more hives! A few existing hives have already been placed inside, but soon the shelf space will be filled with new hives - some with bees and others as houses for future colonies. The cage will also serve as a demonstration apiary so that tourists and visitors can safely visit a Maasai Honey apiary (without the threat of being stung!)

You are warmly welcome to visit the new stingless bee cage - a great addition to a wildlife safari!

To learn more about stingless honey, read - “Where does stingless honey come from?”