Understanding the Challenge

Farmers often find themselves grappling with various pests threatening their crops. While these can range from microscopic organisms to large birds, the challenge becomes even greater when the intruders are colossal elephants, weighing up to 15,000 pounds and standing over ten feet tall. Small-scale subsistence farmers living on the periphery of Ruaha National Park in Tanzania face this daunting challenge regularly as wild elephants raid their crop fields, erasing months of hard work in mere hours.

From Problem to Solution

Fortunately, an innovative solution has emerged from an unlikely source: honeybees. Sarah Maisonneuve became acutely aware of the crop-raiding issue in 2010 during her PhD research.

“The animosity generated by elephant raids is palpable,” said Maisonneuve. “It’s akin to ranchers dealing with wolves straying outside national park boundaries.” Her research introduced her to Dr. Lucy King, who discovered that elephants possess a natural fear of bees. This revelation led to the development of a unique fencing system that utilizes beehives to deter elephants from crop fields.

Implementation of Beehive Fences

In 2014, Maisonneuve launched a nonprofit called The Wildlife Connection, which initiated a pilot project aimed at educating Tanzanian farmers about constructing and benefiting from beehive fences.

“Initially, convincing farmers that elephants are afraid of bees was a challenge,” said Maisonneuve. “But they quickly learned that a bee in their trunk can lead to serious consequences for an elephant.”

Farmers were instructed on how to create fences using hollow logs repurposed as beehives, which are hung between support posts with wires. Hives are typically spaced 20 feet apart.

“If an elephant brushes against a hive, it triggers a swarm of angry bees,” said Maisonneuve. “Some hives are dummies coated in beeswax—just the smell can repel elephants. We also experimented with spicy hot chili pepper fences, but elephants don’t seem to become habituated to the beehive fences.”

Double Benefits: Honey and Crop Protection

Beyond protecting crops, these beehive fences also provide farmers with honey.

“While the honey isn’t commercially valuable, it serves as a vital source of sustenance for households and an opportunity for sharing within the community,” stated Maisonneuve.

Community Involvement

Community involvement has been integral to the success of The Wildlife Connection’s project. “Instead of imposing a solution, we collaborated closely with local communities,” noted Maisonneuve. “Farmers are involved in maintaining the fences, giving them a sense of ownership over the project. This collective effort allows one fence to safeguard hundreds of farms by leveraging natural barriers like mountains or rivers.”

The organization has put in place guidelines to ensure that beehive fences do not obstruct elephants’ access to water, and they do not assist farmers who have cleared forests for new agricultural land.

Educational Initiatives

The Wildlife Connection has also created a curriculum to educate local farmers, reaching approximately 3,500 participants annually. This includes visits to Ruaha National Park, where many farmers, despite living near its boundary, have never stepped foot inside. “They often perceive the park solely as a hunting reserve for tourists,” Maisonneuve explained. This educational program has significantly improved farmers’ perceptions of wildlife conservation and introduced them to alternative livelihood strategies, such as chicken farming and raising goats.

Expanding Impact

Word of The Wildlife Connection’s innovative approach has spread. “We now operate the largest beehive fence project in Africa utilizing traditional log hives,” Maisonneuve highlighted. “The demand has surged as people observe the effectiveness of our beehive fences, aligning with our mission to reduce human-elephant conflicts while conserving the endangered wild elephant population.”

A Unified Vision

“People are fundamentally the same everywhere,” Maisonneuve remarked. “Everyone faces challenges, and we all seek the best for our families. In this case, what benefits the farmers also protects one of the world’s largest and most majestic land animals.”

Learn More

To discover more about this initiative, visit www.thewildlifeconnection.org.

For those interested in gaining further insights, Jerry’s book, “Dear County Agent Guy,” is available at www.workman.com and in bookstores nationwide.