Kikonyogo Ngatya
20 May 2008
Kampala — A COMMON type of black ants has been singled out as the most devastating pest to bees in Uganda. The insects commonly called munyeera in Luganda, nginingini in Luo, attack beehives, suck out the honey and kill the bee pupae and eggs.
They are too small to be counter-attacked by beehive guards. They make the bees flee the hives.
Dr Robert Kajobe, a bee researcher at the National Livestock Resources Research Institute ( Na LIRRI) said the ants can reduce honey yields by about 70% on a hive.
He said although there had never been a deliberate government-sponsored, bee research programme, Uganda has a high potential of producing about 500,000 metric tonnes of honey per year.
Kajobe said, the new research programme based at the institute has developed a strategic plan to increase Uganda's honey production in the next decade. It will profile farmers, their needs and challenges and ways of improving the sector.
There are about 80,000 bee farmers in the country. However, the statistics are scanty, hampering interventions to promote the sector.
He said termites, rats, snakes, brown ants and wax moths were pests of the honey bees. "The problem stems from unhygienic and poor management of the apiary location. If the place is dirty and bushy, it will certainly attract pests," Kajobe said. Residues and dirt contaminate the honey; affect its quality and competitiveness on international markets.
Currently farmers harvest honey twice a year. However, scientists are looking at developing a honey bee calendar so that farmers are able to know when honey is ready. "Sometimes honey is ready but the farmers do not know. They lose both time and money if they do not harvest in time," Kajobe said.
The study will also profile the existing bee diseases in the country.
Most honey producers prefer apis mellifera and asonii bees species. But six other species of sting less trigonid bees are widely kept.
There are also other exotic species being kept. However, these bees often die when their environment is degraded, they are invaded by toxic pasture species, or when Poor harvest technologies and agro-chemical are used.
During harvesting of honey, hives are crudely attacked at night and in the process many bees die as honey is extracted. Some studies by Makerere University say exotic plant species like lantana camara poison bees and kill them. Normally, the bees would instinctively avoid landing on the toxic plants in their hunt for nectar. However, during drought when other crops have withered, the toxic plants tend to be drought resistant, flower and subsequently attract bees.
Researchers in Nyabyeya Forestry College in Bunyoro say the making of waragi, a local spirit which gives off methanol, also kills bees. This is in addition to various viruses, fungal and bacterial infections carried by migrating colonies from South Africa and Europe.
The new programme will harmonise all research efforts for better honey production.
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