Fences made of Bees in Uganda keep Elephants Out
Protecting Crops and Gardens from Elephants with Bee Fences
How do you keep Elephants from trampling your garden in Africa – people have tried so many things from shooting guns into the air to scare them off to digging trenches that at the end of the day are filled by the elephants. In some places in Uganda they have resorted to burning red peppers along with elephant dung but the method that seems to work best in scaring off the giants of the Savannah and the Forest (forest elephants) are bees – actually fences made of bees or bee hives keeps elephants at bay, keeps them out of fields and gardens and protects villages that are near wildlife parks such as Queen Elizabeth National Park in Uganda.
The human – wildlife conflict in communities near wildlife parks is ever present in the case of Elephants – both Savannah and Forest species a lot of damage can be done to nearby fields filled with crops and to the gardens of those living near the parks. This conflict of wildlife and people can turn to anger in the local communities and lead to poaching in order to recover their losses and the losses were not small – crops such as soy bean, maize, pineapple, peanuts, cotton, bananas, were lost to the Elephants – the struggle between man and beast was being won by the Elephants – all efforts to stop their nightly onslaught were futile but one – fences made of bees – yes you read right – fences made of bees.
Many things had been tried but only one seems to be effective – Bees. The tiny Bumble Bee frightens the mighty Pachyderm – the African Elephant – even the sound of bees alone will frighten them away– all over Africa Bee Fences are being erected to keep Elephants from Human Settlements – saving the crops of villagers and allowing them to make a living and there is an added blessing from having fences made of bees – income from the honey of the bees to the local community.
No longer sleepless nights beating oil drums to drive the roaming elephants away, no longer night fires or firing weapons into the air – the Bee Security Force – the Bee Askaris are doing their work –Elephants are staying away – Villagers are sleeping peacefully at night and at the same time have a new source of income – Honey. Bee Fences have proved to be an effective method for protecting crops from elephant raids on them and at the same time providing ongoing income from the sale of honey.
Can man and elephants live near each other without the encroachment of elephants into villages, gardens and fields of crops – the answer is in the beehive bee fences that keep out the elephants – simply remarkable giving a new income to villagers in Uganda…from Kampala…jon
If I have ever seen magic, it has been in Africa.” John Hemingway?, African Journeys
Uganda Travel Links
Safaris with Chimpanzee Tracking
Read More
Contact Us
