From Miombo to Mangrove,
biodiversity makes the difference
From the mangrove-rich and clove filled coastlines to the towering mountain forests overflowing with over 450,000 flower species, and the expansive open woodlands known for its Acacia, Tanzania’s forests are as varied as the flora they nurture. It is within these ecosystems that our bees thrive, collecting nectar from a tapestry of native plants, each drop reflecting the rich biodiversity of our land.
Tanzanian Flora diversity
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In the Itigi thicket eco-region, pollen analysis revealed a total of 11 plant families, 19 genus, and 21 species. The species that were most frequently identified, with a frequency of three or more across all three honey collection sites, included: Acacia, Beggarstick, Globular Julbernardia. Other vegetation species found were: Spreading Amaranth, Mombasa Bahia, Sunflower, Sparse-leaved Vernonia, Religious Capparis, Spiny Solanum, & Baobab, to mention a few.
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The potential beekeeping plants in the Coastal Mosaic eco-region include Striated Justicia, Schimper's Beggarticks, Boehm's Brachystegia, Collin's Combretum, Hairy Spurge, Sycamore Fig, and Spiny Solanum. Although these plants are important for beekeeping, they do not fully represent the diverse and complex plant composition of coastal environments. This is because honey bees can fly up to about five miles from their hive to search for food. Other popular species include Mango, Cashew, Coconut, Pumpkin, Drepanolobium Acacia, Baobab, Kapok Tree, Thonning's Fig, Sycamore Fig, Clove, and Guinea Clove.
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Some species, particularly Drepanolobium Acacia, Black Nightshade, Sycamore Fig, Sparse-leaved Vernonia, Pencil Tree, Spiny Solanum Black Irish Elm,Grewia and Kirk's Uapaca, were frequently encountered in honey samples during the analysis.
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Plantation forest can provide most goods and services that are provided by natural forests such as timber and non no-timber forest products, in this case honey. In this study pollen analysis revealed 16 families, 21 genera and 23 species. Among the identified species Rose Gum is the only typical plantation tree. Other plantation trees such as rubber tree, their pollen cannot be seen in honey because honeybees do forage on extra floral sectaries like Natal Mahogany, Thistle,Thonning's Fig, African Cherry, & Black Monkey Orange.
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Among the identified plant species, pollen from the usua Figs, Acacia, Thistles, Baobabs, and Java Plums other species found where: Daisy, Variable-leaved Justicia,Desert Rose, Mombasa Bahia, African Cordia, Tanganyika Commiphora, Balsam Apple, African Juniper, White Acalypha, & Indian Acalypha amongst many. These results suggest that honey from farmlands can vary in terms of physical and chemical properties, antioxidant properties, antimicrobial activity, and sensory qualities.
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The pollen types found in the honey samples associated with mangrove vegetation of the family Rhizophoraceae were from Grey Mangrove, Large-leafed Mangrove, Spurred Mangrove, Red Mangrove, and the other Mangrove Apple. Bees also forage amongst popular vegetations, to name a few: Clove, Coconut Palm, Wild Date Palm, Asthma-plant, Whistling Thorn, Thonning's Fig,, Waterberry, & Black Nightshade.
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Within the Riverine and Swamps eco-region, pollen analysis revealed 14 plant families with 19 genera and 24 species where honey bees collected pollen. Beggar ticks and sycamore figs were found to be dominant in the study site followed by Java Plum, Striated Justicia, Water Spinach, Fever Tree, African Cherry, Wild Waterberry, & Parrot's Feather. This implies that only multifloral honey can be produced from these areas.
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A total of 16 families, 23 genera, and 29 plant species were identified in the Coastal Mosaic eco-region. Cashew, Mango, Coconut, Baoba, Fig & Clove have the potential beekeeping plants in the Coastal Mosaic eco-region, although they do not represent the intricate and varied composition of coastal environments. This is because honey bees can fly up to about five miles from their hive to seek food.
Natural Vegetation | Honey Type | Locations |
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Miombo woodlands | Miombo honey | Tabora, Mpanda, Chunya etc. |
Acacia bushlands | Acacia honey | Iringa |
Leucas stricta sp | Creamy-white | Kongwa Dodoma |
Montane | Montane honey | Kilimanjaro, Meru |
Mangrove | Mangrove honey | Rufiji, Lindi, Tanga, Pemba |
Itigi thickets |
Creamy honey |
Itigi Manyoni |
Agricultural crops | Honey Type | Locations |
Sunflower plantations | Sunflower honey | Singida, Dodoma |
Citrus plantations | Citrus honey | Muheza Tanga |
Sisal plantations | Sisal honey | Tanga, Morogoro |