In Kenya's Tsavo National Park, farmers are using beehive fences to deter crop raids by elephants. The honeybees offer a nature-friendly solution to potentially dangerous clashes with Earth's largest land animals.
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00:00For years, farmers in this part of Kenya have lived in fear of elephants.
00:09While these elephants are beloved by tourists, they often destroy crops,
00:14and affect the livelihoods of farmers near Tsavo National Park.
00:20A growing elephant population and increasing human encroachment on their habitat
00:25has only made the situation worse.
00:30But now, the soft hum of honeybees is bringing peace to the fields.
01:00These beehive fences are the brainchild of Save the Elephants,
01:05a conservation organization committed to protecting elephants
01:09while supporting local communities.
01:12The concept is simple, yet highly effective.
01:16Each farm is surrounded by a series of connected wires and hanging beehives,
01:22with African honeybees ready to defend their territory.
01:26When the elephants approach the farm and they would like to rain,
01:31they normally push the wire like bees.
01:34The bees will attack the elephants around the ears and the trunk.
01:39Another thing is that once the elephants hear the sound of the bees and the smell,
01:44they run away.
01:47Beyond protecting crops, the bees provide another benefit,
01:51honey, that helps farmers to earn extra income.
01:55The bees help me with my work.
01:59When I am ready, I get money to pay my school fees.
02:09The project has been a game changer,
02:12reducing crop rates by elephants by 86% during peak seasons,
02:17according to a recent study.
02:19But challenges remain.
02:22Kenya's severe droughts, worsened by climate change,
02:25have affected the bees' activity.
02:28And for many subsistence farmers,
02:30the cost of installing these fences remains out of reach.
02:35So the organization is exploring alternatives,
02:39such as metal sheet fences, to help deter elephants.
02:43But for project lead Ewan Brennan,
02:45the bee solution remains the most effective and sustainable option.
02:50I think people are surprised how well they work,
02:52and it's a nice nature-based solution as well.
02:56It's nothing mechanical, there's no electricity involved,
03:00it's literally just beehives.
03:02For local farmers, the birth of the bees is the sweet sound of hope
03:07for a new way to live in harmony with nature's giants.
03:11Ryan Wu and Billy Wu for Taiwan Plus.