Yesterday I saw something I’d never seen before – a honeybee hive underground. In the US, I’ve heard of solitary mining bees but from what I’ve seen they don’t dig and build elaborate hives in the dirt – much less fill them with honey.
Our groundskeeper Mejida found this hive today while he was cutting the grass in the backyard. He saw the small bees going in and out of a hole and was tipped off to their residence. He carefully dug around the hive and was able to remove the whole thing intact.
I was shocked that the bees were not aggressive at all. Our Ghanaian friends swore that this type of bee never stings. I’m allergic to bee stings so I was cautious at first but it was quickly evident that these were very docile insects.
Mejida and his colleague Zachary spent a good while squeezing all the “honey” out of the hive into a bucket (it’s actually just nectar). They were careful not to kill the bees saying that the insects would simply fly off and make a new hive underground.
I saved some of the nectar in a small jar to use in the house. It is quite sweet but has a very strong smell and flavor to it. As is, I can hardly eat it raw. Instead I’ll use it as a flavor enhancer for my tea.
Adrena or “Mining Bees”
After doing some research I found that these bees are in fact “mining bees” – part of the Adrena genus in the Adrenidae family of bees. Most of them cannot sting because their stinger is so small.
They prefer sandy soil in shady areas to protect them from the heat. The “honey” they make is not honey at all but, in fact, a mixture of pollen and nectar. Hence, the strong smell and flavor.
Bees in Scripture
By the way, I went to Scripture to see if ground bees are mentioned there at all. I found that honey is said to be found in rocks (Psalm 81:16), in animal carcasses (Judges 14:8) and “on” the ground (1 Samuel 14:25). From what I read, the Hebrew in the “on the ground” reference is obscure so we aren’t sure if the honeycomb that the Israelites find is actually in the ground or had fallen from the forest trees onto the ground. Verse 26 identifies it as a “flow of honey” so it could be a ground bee hive that was disturbed by the troops and honey was flowing out of it. But that’s just my guess.
Nonetheless, 1 Samuel 14:24-33 is an interesting read where we see the cost of poor leadership (aka King Saul). I recommend you check it out and have a snack with honey while you’re at it!