Abstract
In an indigenous forest community in Palawan, Philippines, honey gathering from the giant honey bee (Apis dorsata) is a traditional subsistence practice. We characterize the social-ecological dynamics of giant honey bees with indigenous peoples of Tagbanua ethnicity using the mobile agent-based ecosystem service (MABES) framework. Chemical and pollen analysis conducted on honey samples generated data on the ecological features of this linked social-ecological system. These were supplemented by 251 household surveys and key informant interviews with institutional representatives to identify the social and institutional features of the system. Honey samples analyzed for pollen showed a total of 11 different plant families and did not have any traces of pesticide residue. The majority of households interviewed use honey as food, medicine, and a saleable commodity. A small percentage of households use fertilizers and pesticides known to be harmful to bees. Institutions have different knowledge strengths that can be tapped through a transdisciplinary approach. As the scale of production and delivery of MABES is distinctly a product of the mobility of service-delivering organisms, we recommend using a landscape approach with a focus on maintaining the quality of both the local environment and landscapes around the site of ES delivery.
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Acknowledgments
We are grateful to Andrée Hamm, SAKTAS and the Tagbanua community of Sagpangan, Ruth Canlas, Erwin Diloy, Joanne Abrina, Loreta Alsa, Lenita Nangcod, Jun Cayron, Tanya Conlu, and Emil Robles. The first author would like to thank the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the Foundation fiat panis, and The Eva Crane Trust for financial support.
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The data that support the findings of this study are available from the ZEF Data Portal https://data.zef.de/under restricted access based on the consent provided by the indigenous respondents. Data are available from the authors upon reasonable request and with permission of the representative of the indigenous Tagbanua participants.
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The first author was funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the Foundation fiat panis, and the Eva Crane Trust for this study. All the other authors do not have any potential conflicts of interest.
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This study has passed the Health and Security Clearance and Ethical Clearance procedure of the Center for Development Research of the University of Bonn, Germany.
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Free, Prior, and Informed Consent was obtained from the indigenous respondents of the study.
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Matias, D.M.S., Borgemeister, C., Sémah, AM. et al. The Role of Linked Social-Ecological Systems in a Mobile Agent-Based Ecosystem Service from Giant Honey Bees (Apis dorsata) in an Indigenous Community Forest in Palawan, Philippines. Hum Ecol 47, 905–915 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-019-00114-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-019-00114-7