Beekeeping in Egypt

Is honey mined in Egypt? Many people imagine Egypt as a country of deserts and pyramids, and therefore a logical question arises - is honey mined in Egypt? It must be remembered that Egypt is one of the three countries with the most ancient beekeeping. Ancient Egypt produced a lot of honey. Currently, cotton, clover, alfalfa, mustard, corn, sunflower, and coriander are cultivated in the fields of Egypt. In addition, bees visit citrus fruits, palm trees, and wild nectar-bearing plants.

 

Does Egypt have bees?

How many bees are there in Egypt? In Egypt, bees are kept in permanent hives El-Baladia, of which there are up to 203 thousand mainly in the south of Egypt. What kind of bees make honey in Egypt? Beekeepers keep the native Egyptian bee [Arismellifera (fasciata) lamarkii]. The hives are made from a mixture of clay with finely chopped straw, cylindrical in shape, 130 cm long, 25 cm in diameter, with a wall thickness of 3 cm. The cylinders are covered with lids at the top and bottom.

Egyptian apiary

An Egyptian apiary consists of hives arranged in horizontal rows one above the other and forming a truncated pyramid. An apiary can consist of 200 or more hives

Beekeeping season in Egypt

Families are seen two or three times a year. The first time - in April - May with the aim of destroying swarming queen cells and organizing layering. The second is at the end of summer, for honey selection.

The beekeeping season in Egypt runs from March to November, while the winter season lasts from December to March. Egypt has three main seasons; Citrus season is during the first two weeks of April, clover season is from May to the first week of June, and cotton season is in August and September. Production per family ranges from 9 to 15 kg per year (all three honey harvests).

Honey is squeezed out of the combs by hand or with a press, after which it is filtered and pieces of comb honey are added to the liquid part. Honey is selected once, so it is polyfloral: from clover, alfalfa, cotton, citrus and other honey plants. When inspecting colonies in non-dismountable hives, special tools are used.

The lower hives must be protected from dampness. To do this, the top and sides are coated with clay, and various protective structures are built. Wooden canopies lined with climbing plants protect the apiary from the wind. On the northern and northwestern sides it is fenced with a stone wall or trees, often eucalyptus trees. To block ants' access to the hives, a ditch is dug around and filled with water.

Wooden hives of the Langstroth type appeared in Egypt in 1880. The hives stand on stands 20-30 cm high. Typically, such an apiary contains from 20 to 100 families, and sometimes more. Currently, there are about 1 million 372 thousand collapsible hives in Egypt.

Does Egypt produce honey? From 1971 to 2005, the number of families in permanent hives decreases (from 662 to 203 thousand), and in modern ones it increases (from 220 thousand to 1 million 372 thousand). Total honey productivity increased from 615 to 8491 tons. The average amount of honey per family in permanent hives decreased from 3.1 to 2.97 kg, and in modern hives - from 18.5 to 6.18 kg. In 2005, families in permanent hives received significantly less wax (57 tons) than in 1971 (216 tons), while in modern hives its production increased from 16 to 110 tons.

What kind of bees make honey in Egypt?

Egyptian bees [Arismellifera (fasciata) lamarkii] are small and yellow in color. The first three tergites are dark yellow, with a brown stripe along the margin, the end of the abdomen is shiny brown. The uterus is yellow with a reddish-bronze abdomen, relatively small, fertile, and very mobile. In the drone, the first tergite is yellow-orange, covered with white hairs, the rest are dark brown with a yellow stripe. The end of the abdomen is covered with long hairs, and the chest has dense gray-white pubescence.

The bees are very swarming, restless, and angry. Compared to other breeds, they collect more honey from different plants and are resistant to diseases, and in particular to varroatosis. Since 1925, Krajina bees (Arismelliferacarnica) have been bred, and before that Cypriot bees (Arismelliferacyprea) were brought to Egypt. In addition, gray Caucasian mountain bees (Arismelliferacaucasica) and Italian (Arismelliferaligustica) bees are bred. In modern apiaries, crosses of the first and sometimes second generation of Egyptian and Krajina bees are used, and maternal families of the Krajina breed are kept in isolated locations. Italian bees are not widespread in Egypt. There are 15 universities in Egypt, each of which has beekeeping departments or departments that conduct research work. Work is being carried out on the selection and genetics of the Egyptian bee, obtaining inbred lines and interline hybrids, cross-lines between Egyptian and Krajina, gray mountain Caucasian and Italian bees in different areas of the south and north of Egypt and in the Oasis.

They are engaged in the production of royal jelly and bee venom for medical purposes, artificial insemination, and protection of bees from pesticides used against cotton pests. Much attention is paid to stimulating feeding for bees, the study of diseases and pests and other issues of beekeeping.

Are there bees in Egypt? Didn't stay wild solitary bees: Megachile, Andrena, Osmia, Prosopis, Halictus and Anthophora, which are active pollinators of entomophilous agricultural plants, are also ignored. Egyptian beekeepers have their own magazine, “The Kingdom of Bees,” whose editor-in-chief and founder was Dr. Ahmed Zaki Abu-Shady (1892 1955), the father of Egyptian beekeeping. The first issue of the magazine was published in 1930 and was published for 18 years in Arabic and English. Then the publication of the magazine ceased until 1972. Currently, the magazine “Kingdom of the Bees” is published in Egypt 4 times a year in Arabic

There are factories and private companies in the country that produce foundation, beehives, frames, various beekeeping equipment and everything necessary for beekeeping.

Does Egypt produce honey? Egypt exports honey to various countries. Additionally, Egypt exports beekeeping tools and bee colonies to various Arab and African countries.

 

Enemies and diseases of bees in Egypt

Common bee diseases in Egypt are the same as anywhere in the world. Egyptian beekeepers pay special attention to the varroa mite. Egyptian beekeepers, as a rule, try to increase the number of colonies in apiaries; this allows the beekeeper, when American foulbrood occurs, to simply destroy sick colonies, as well as weak colonies weakened by nosematosis or acarapidosis.

Common enemies of bees in Egypt are the oriental red wasp Vespa orientalis and the wax moth. Yellow wasps, bee lice, bee wolves and small hive beetles are not a problem in Egypt. The bee eater is also a seasonal enemy of Egyptian apiaries in spring and fall.