African Stingless Bee

Meliponula ferruginea

A medium-sized stingless bee species widespread across East African forests and woodlands, including parts of Kenya and Tanzania, known for producing a distinctive honey rich in the sugar trehalulose. Like other Meliponini it lacks a functional sting and instead relies on biting and resin-based nest defences.

Species

Meliponini

Family

Apidae

Climate requirements

Found in a broader range of wooded and forest-edge habitats than the more forest-restricted Meliponula bocandei, tolerating moderately drier woodland alongside humid forest, which makes it somewhat more flexible for meliponiculture across Kenya's mid-altitude agroforestry zones.