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Pot-Honey pp 219–227Cite as

Stingless Bees: A Historical Perspective

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Abstract

Stingless bees are social insects that have existed for over 100 million years. They are found in tropical and subtropical zones around the world. Until the introduction to the Americas of the honey bee, Apis mellifera, stingless bees were the main source of cerumen and honey and therefore played a significant role in native civilisations. Large quantities of stingless bee honey and wax had to be given in tributes to the Spanish conquerors and were shipped to Europe in the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Honey bees later provided a much bigger return for the effort of management. These are bees of high valuation since ancient time and expanding legacy of cultural expressions. Local names of stingless bees are included in songs, poems, and novels. Resurgence of interest in pot-honey would give economic boost to meliponiculture, promote research of their putative medicinal attributes, and ensure the conservation of stingless bees.

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Acknowledgements

I wish to thank the editor, Professor Patricia Vit for her patience, tolerance, constant guidance, and above all friendship without which I would have given up the task, and most appreciated editorial comments from Dr. David W Roubik, and also those who refereed the material for their knowledge and intellectual rigour which is vital to a publication of this kind. Finally, I repeat the dedication at the beginning of this chapter. So much research work into the history of beekeeping owes everything to Dr. Eva Crane and the foundations she laid in her works.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. International Bee Research Association (IBRA), 16 North Road, Cardiff, CF10 3DY, UK

    Richard Jones

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  1. Richard Jones
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Correspondence to Richard Jones .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Zumba Sur, University of the Andes, Villa Del Rio 8, Merida, 5101, Venezuela

    Patricia Vit

  2. Av. Bandeirantes, 3900, Ribeirão Preto, 14040-901, São Paulo, Brazil

    Silvia R. M. Pedro

  3. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancon, Panama

    David Roubik

Additional information

This chapter is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Eva Crane who, in over 50 years of worldwide research, produced the seminal texts on the history of beekeeping and honey hunting. Everyone advancing these studies today owes her a tremendous debt.

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Jones, R. (2013). Stingless Bees: A Historical Perspective. In: Vit, P., Pedro, S., Roubik, D. (eds) Pot-Honey. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-4960-7_14

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