Malaysia’s honey hunters defy angry bees to harvest treetop treasure

Ulu Muda, Malaysia: On a moonless night deep in the Malaysian rainforest, two men perched precariously on high branches use a smoking torch to draw thousands of bees from a treetop hive, braving the angry swarm to collect their prized honey. The honey hunters, as they are known, are rag- tag groups of villagers who head to remote corners of the jungle every year in search of the rare nectar, hidden in towering tualang trees. “This is the real thing,” said Abdul Samad Ahmad, 60, who has been harvesting honey in this way for more than 20 years. “There’s a lot of nutrition in this honey. You can make it into medicine, for your cough or cold.” Like New Zealand’s manuka honey, also hailed for its supposed medicinal qualities, Malaysian tualang honey is expensive, fetching 150 ringgit ($ 38) a kilogram. But the generations- old practice faces myriad threats, from environmental destruction and falling bee numbers to a lack of interest among the young. The diehard hunters remain optimistic — for them, there is no greater buzz than climbing trees 250 feet tall to gather honey made by bees gorged on sweet nectar from exotic jungle flowers. The honey- collecting season in northern Malaysia’s Greater Ulu Muda forest runs from February to April, when giant honey bees arrive from other parts of Asia to make their hives in the trees that stretch high above the rainforest canopy. On a recent trip, Abdul Samad and six others travelled far into the forest, boarding two small boats and sailing across a lake to reach a tualang. They nailed branches up its trunk a few feet apart to create a makeshift ladder, replacing old ones from the previous year. As night fell, after layering up and donning thick jackets, the group lit vine roots twisted together to create a smoking torch. They clambered up the tree, hitting the torch against the trunk as they approached a hive. A flood of embers showered below, and a team member called out to the bees: “Come down, black sweet, come down.” A swarm of bees rushed out, chasing the sparks of light — granting the hunters precious moments to cut through the hive and fill a bucket with chunks of honeycomb. The men worked through the night, slowly moving around the tree’s many hives and only stopping just before dawn, having collected 43 kg of honey. The hunters were stung numerous times but continued working, insisting they are used to the pain.