Hive types - Ethiopia
A hive type is an enclosure structure in which honey bees are housed by apiarists. Every hive type has its own characteristics. On the one hand, traditional hives do not need special skills to build them, have low starting costs and are often made of simple, locally available materials. On the other hand, they have also disadvantages: the bee management is difficult (inspecting, harvesting, disease prophylaxis, adding supplementary food, …), hives are more susceptible against external environmental stress (climate conditions, pests and predators, …), the yield of honey bee products is often lower compared to modern types, and some hive types are even destructive to the surrounding forests (e.g. bark hives, log hives, …). [1]
Ethiopia: About 95% of Ethiopian beekeepers use traditional hive-systems. Those hive types differ from area to area, based on locally available materials (clay, straw, bamboo, bark, logs, …) [2]. The remaining percentage of beekeepers use transitional (promoted since 1978) and modern hives. [3] [4] The used hive system differs from region to region: while 56% of traditional hives were found in the Oromia region which produces 40% of national traditional hive honey, only 19% of people in the Amhara, Tigray and SNNP regions use traditional hives. Latter contribute 27% of national traditional hive honey production. [5] A survey by Tesfaye & Tesfaye (2007) revealed reasons, why most beekeepers do not possess modern hives-systems: the starting costs are high, lack of managing skills, unavailability of modern bee hives in the particular area, or a combination of the mentioned issues. [6] The number of movable frame hive-systems was estimated to be 100,843 (2009). [7] Modern beekeeping is mostly practiced in the southwestern and central highlands and since 1970, five movable frame hives were introduced to Ethiopia with Zander, Langstroth , and Dadant as the most common used hive systems, respectively. [1] [8] Popular transitional beehives are either the Kenyan top bar hive, or the locally made "Chefeka" hive. [7]
Traditional Ethiopian bee hive made of locally available materials. This hive type is installed in trees. Photo credits: Fiedler Sascha.
Clay pot hive for stingless bees used by the Holeta Bee Research Center in Ethiopia. Photo credits: Schädlich Stefanie.
Transitional top-bar hive system. Photo credits: Fiedler Sascha.
Modern hive system with movable frames. Photo credits: Fiedler Sascha.
Based on the needs of local conditions, Kibebew Wakjira from the Holeta Bee Research Center in Ethiopia developed a possible standard hive system for future beekeeping in Ethiopia. This system is also suitable for the SAMS-hive-system established within the European Union's 2020 Horizon project called SAMS - Smart Apiculture Management Services and can be adapted for Indonesian honey bees as well. For further details read the following chapter: Bee Hive Manual.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Gupta, R. K., Reybroeck, W., van Veen, J. W., & Gupta, A. (2014). Beekeeping for Poverty Alleviation and Livelihood Security: Vol. 1: Technological Aspects of Beekeeping. Dordrecht, Springer Netherlands.
- ↑ Kigatiira, K. I. (2014). African Honeybee. Ncooro Academy, Nairobi, Kenya.
- ↑ Gidey, Y., & Mekonen, T. (2010). Participatory Technology and Constraints Assessment to Improve the Livelihood of Beekeepers in Tigray Region, northern Ethiopia. CNCS, 2(1), 76-92.
- ↑ Taye, B., Desta, A., Girma, C., & Mekonen, W.T. (2016). Evaluation of transitional and modern hives for honey production in the Mid Rift Valley of Ethiopia. Bulletin of Animal Health and Production in Africa, 64(1), 157–165.
- ↑ MoA & ILRI (2013). Apiculture value chain vision and strategy for Ethiopia. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Ministry of Agriculture and International Livestock Research Institute.
- ↑ Tesfaye, K., & Tesfaye, L. (2007). Study of honey production system in Adami Tulu Jido Kombolcha district in mid rift valley of Ethiopia. Livestock Research for Rural Development, 19(11), 1-9.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Gemechis, L. Y. (2016). Honey Production and Marketing in Ethiopia. Agriculture And Biology Journal Of North America, 7(5), 248-253.
- ↑ Hailemichael, T. B. (2018). The status of beekeeping practices and honey production system in Ethiopia-a review. International Journal of Engineering Development and Research, 6(2), 581-585.
