Beekeeping in Danau Sentarum National Park Indonesia. The communities here harvest honey from Apis dorsata colonies nesting in the swamps, obtaining up to 25 tonnes of honey each season, and a significant income source. The film introduces the three types of honey hunting: Leku – the ownership of the tree is passed down through generations; Repak – the tree is not owned but a honey hunter can put his ‘mark’ on the tree to claim the honey from the colony. Thirdly, and the method shown here in detail, is Tikung, in which a rafter is attached to the tree for the colony to build its nest. Each tikun takes about one hour to prepare, and a honey hunter will have 50-100 in use at any time. The film is informative and enjoyable, and highly suitable for showing at beekeepers’ and other meetings. Profiting from honey bees has English subtitles. Steadfast BfD Journal readers will remember the article on Tikung beekeeping in issue 59. This article is available now on the Information Centre of our website www.beesfordevelopment.org
Telapak with the NTFP Exchange Programme 2005 (25 minutes)