Which insects or their products are eaten?
Bees and honey
Bee larvae are sometimes eaten together with the honey. Beer brewing from honey is particularly common in West Africa [Burundi: Hutu; Cameroon: Wimboum; Guinea-Bissau: Balanta; Kenya: Kalenjin (21),Kamba, Kikuyu, Luo, Meru; Sudan: Kuku; Tanzania: Chaga, Iraqw, Mwarusha, Pare; Zambia: Bemba, Lozi, Tonga, RES].
Ants
The nutritious alates (queens) of the thief or black ant, Carebara vidua (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) (Fig. 2) are collected during their nuptial flight, when these ants emerge in large numbers from the termitaries in which their nests are concealed (22). Only the abdomens are eaten, either uncooked or roasted (23, 24). They are consumed in Kenya (Luo) (23), Uganda (Ganda and Nyoro), Zambia (Tonga, Nyanja, RES) and Zimbabwe (Shona), often by frying or roasting the abdomen. They emerge from holes near the termite hill and for preventing them to fly, the head is often crushed. The small ants (workers) are irritating as they come out from the holes at the same time. The females are over 2 cm long, while the tiny yellowish workers are less than 2 mm long. They build their nests in close association with the nests of termites on which they prey (25).
Sugar ants (Camponotes spp.) are also eaten, mainly because it is difficult to remove them from the sugar, but at the same time it is believed that they are good for the stomach (Mozambique: Bitonga, Macua, Rhonga, Shangana), Zambia (Bemba, Luunda, Tonga, RES), and Zimbabwe (Ndebele, Shona). The San from the Kalahari in southern Africa, hand-collect some Camponotes ants which are then pounded and mixed with salad, giving it a sweet-sour flavour, because of the formic acid (26).
Weaver ants, popular food in south east Asia (27), are not eaten in Africa, except for turning sauces acid (CAR: Kari). Only the Bamileke in Cameroon mentioned that they eat the eggs of the driver ants.
Wasps
Larvae or adults of wasps are not eaten, except for their use as medicine. I only came across a story mentioned by the Hausa in Niger, that they break the wasp into two and that from the tube of the abdomen (it must have been sphecid wasp) they suck a sugary substance.
Beneficial ants and wasps
Driver ants clear the house of cockroaches, mice, snakes, scorpions, and termites (Cameroon: Bakossie, Bamileke, Bassas, Bolous, Beti-Ewondo; Kenya: Kalenjin, Kamba; Tanzania: Chaga, Iraqw, Mwarusha, Zanaki; Togo: Ewe). During the occupation, the occupants need to be absent. If you want snakes to come out of a hole, collected driver ant soldiers should be poured in (Nigeria: Yoruba). Contrary when ants are present it is believed that there are no snakes (Tanzania: Chaga). However, how to protect or clear your house and your animals from driver ants? Fire was mentioned (Benin: Nagot; Nigeria: Yoruba), salt (Cameroon: Bamileke; Nigeria: Yoruba), ashes (Cameroon: Bakossie, Bamileke; Tanzania: Iraqw, Pare; Togo: Ewe), kerosine (Cameroon: Bakossie; Uganda: Ganda) or petrol (Cameroon: Bamileke, Banen).
In the north of Cameroun, the Mofu collect a thousand Dorylus soldier ants and put them in a calabash with leaves of Ficus abutilifolia. Using some rituals they release the ants in order to clear houses of termites such as Trinervitermes spp from the straw of the roof, and Macrotermes subhyalinus from the sorghum stems protecting the walls, as well as snakes or other vermin (28). They can even direct the driver ants by means of an ochre (natural clay earth pigment) trail to parts of the house where infestations of vermin or termites are most severe.
Wasps in orchards prevent not only mango’s being stolen (Cameroon: Banen; Mozambique: Changana; Tanzania: Sukuma), but they also protect bird nests being raided by egg poachers (Tanzania: Sukuma; Chad: Sara-Niellim; Zimbabwe: Shona).
People at the borders of the Sahara, such as the Tuareg, collect grass seeds from ant nests (29). This was also mentioned by informants from this region (Chad: Goulaye, Kanembou, Ngambaye, Tupuri; Mali: Songhai, Tuareg; Niger: Hausa, Songhai; Senegal: Wolof; Sudan: Gaälien, Mahas). One of those seeds are from Panicum turgidum, a stiff desert grass with smooth and solid stems (30). Also, the Nama people of southern Africa systematically and regularly collect from the stores of grass seeds collected by certain black ants.
Medicine
Bees and honey
In Sudan (Dongolawi, Kambari-Abadi, Kuku, Kawahla, Rubatab, RES) bee stings are widely used as a cure against rheumatic arthritis [see for a review of bioactivities of bee venom: Azam, Ahmed (31), Lee, Son (32) and Aliyazicioglu (33)]. This is also practiced in other countries (Burkina Faso: Mossi; Mozambique: Shona; Tanzania: Mwarusha). In Benin, a powder or decoction of the bee Apis mellifera, mixed with certain plant species, is used against dizziness, tiredness, asthma, stomach-ache, and myopia (34).
Honey
The use of honey in medicine is very well know, as indicated by several review articles (35–37). To use honey as a medicine is general practice in sub-Saharan Africa and was so recurrent in my interviews, that countries and ethnic groups need not to be mentioned. In the Arabic and Islamic world one has to take into account that the prophet Mohammed considered a drink of honey as one of the methods in curing an illness (38). It seems to cure most ailments and the following were mentioned: allergy, anaemia, chest pain (often with eggs), bad cough (used with lime), whooping cough, asthma, flu, high fever (as ointment), influenza, tonsillitis, earache [also mentioned as remedy in the Qur’an (39; p. 89)], hiccup, tetanus, measles, as an ointment for dermatological problems (such as boils, sores, scabies, ulcers, leishmaniasis wounds, insect bites), jaundice, eye problems, cancer, epilepsy in Sudan (40), tiredness, stomach problems, (amoebic) dysentery, colic, constipation, diabetes, hypertension, palpitations, haemorrhoids, intestinal worms, poisoning (as antivenom), to purify the blood. Several times it was mentioned that it should be mixed with certain herbs. In Zanzibar it is often mixed with raw eggs against cough. Besides curing health problems, it was also considered to prevent diseases and therefore used as a sweetener instead of sugar. It is also used as a carrier for other medicines. In West Africa honey is often prescribed by marabouts (Muslim religious leader and teacher). It can also be used as a cosmetic (e.g. face masks by women), but also for cuts, scars, and (circumcision) wounds as an anti-septic. Very common is the use against burns, which frequently occurs as the use of open cooking fires in homesteads is common.
Honey can also be used as a stimulant: aphrodisiac, to obtain vital sperm, to facilitate child delivery, for babies who have difficulties in getting their teeth and for stimulating the intellect and the memory for babies and young children. Babies even during the first day of their lives, specifically in West Africa, receive a drop of honey in the mouth. In Nigeria (Yoruba), it is used at wedding ceremonies as dowry (e.g. beer from honey as marriage is as sweet as honey) and naming ceremonies (honey put in the mouth of babies). It was also several times mentioned that pregnant women should not take it as it provokes an abortion (Cameroon: Bamileke; CAR: Gbaya; Chad: Goulaya; Kenya: Kamba; Niger: Hausa; Sudan: Kuku;). It is also used as offers for the ancestors (Madagascar).
For all these uses of honey mentioned above, a pot of honey seems to be present in all African households.
Bee wax
Bee wax is used for closing holes in containers (Cameroon: Beti-Ewondo; Burundi: Hutu; Kenya: Kamba, Luo; Togo: Akebu; Zambia: Lovale, Tonga), for making candles (Cameroon: Bamileke; Zambia: Tonga) and for treating music instruments such as drums (DRC: Teke; Zambia: Luvale) hand pianos (Cameroon: Bamileke; Zambia: Tonga), and string instruments (Cameroon: Bamileke; Kenya: Luo). Bee wax in Sudan is used as a cosmetic, mixing it with sesame oil for the hair (Fulani, Mahas, RES) or the skin (Nubian; RES).
Ants
Weaver ants of the genus Oecophylla construct nests in trees by weaving together leaves using larval silk. In Australia and south east Asia these ants are used as biological control agents (41). But this was only once meant by one informant from Pemba Zanzibar, whose father used it. The African species is Oecophylla longinoda. Mostly is was mentioned that it is used as aphrodisiac (Cameroon: Bafia, Beti-Eton, Beti-Ewondo, Bamileke) and as medicine to cure asthma/cough (Cameroon: Bani-Pahuin; Zanzibar; Pemba), or rheumatism (Togo: RES), often by boiling the nest with ants and adding some medicinal plants. In Benin, a powder or concoction of Formica spp. with certain plants is used against ulcers, malaria, jaundice, enuresis, and memory loss (the last one also mixed with honey which is generally believed to stimulate memory) (34).
To cure children of about 4–5 years old from bed-wetting, they are put in a disturbed ant nest (of Myrmicaria opaciventris); it seems to be more than just a punishment (Cameroon: Bamileke, Wimboum; Tanzania: Sukuma). The ants can also be put in the bed of the child (Cameroon: Bakossi; Zambia: Sekeseke, REF). To stimulate children to walk, the powder of crushed ants is smeared on scars made in the legs (Zambia: Tonga). When a baby receives the very painful bite by the ant species Brachyponera sennaarensis, the child will walk precociously (Cameroon: Bamileke).
When ants are going to where people have urinated, it is a sign that the person is diabetic (Zanzibar).
Wasps
Wasp nests are often used as medicine, but several informants did not know for which problem (Mali: Minka; Niger: Huasa, Songhai; Tanzania: Iraqw; Togo: Ewe, Kabye). In Central and West Africa often the cure of mumps (viral infection causing swelling of the salivary glands) was mentioned (Benin: Bariba, Fon, Goun, Nagot, Popo, Tori; Cameroon: Bafia, Bakossie, Bamileke, Bassas; Chad: Sara-Kaba: Nigeria: Yoruba; Togo: Ewe). The earthen nest is crushed, mixed with water and the paste is put on the cheeks of children. Not only in sub-Saharan Africa but also in the Amazon this is practised by ethnic groups to relieve symptoms (killing pain and lowering fever)(42). Minerals in the mud function probably act as pharmaceuticals (43). This probably also explains the practice for other problems such as rheumatism (Nigeria; Sudan: Kuku), quicker closing of the fontanel of babies (Togo: Cotocoli), throat infections (Mali: Sarakolé), sinusitis (Mozambique: Bitonga, Tsonga-Rhonga), boils, ulcers and other inflammations (Burkina Faso: Mossi; Cameroon: Bamileke; CAR: Kari; Togo: Ewe; Zambia: Tonga), and a headache (Mali: Tuareg; Mozambique: Shona). Like termite soil it is also used as a plaster (Mali: Tuareg), see also van Huis (15).
Religion and superstition
Social insects are sometimes used in marriages such that the man comes always home. For example, giving the husband a drink made from a wasp nest (Zambia: Nyanja). Probably because the wasp always returns home.
Bees
When a swarm attacks people, it is generally believed that the bees have been sent by an enemy, often with the intend to kill somebody [Benin: Fon, Goun, Nagot, Popo; Burkina Faso: Mossi; Burundi: Hutu; Cameroon: Bamileke, Banen, Bulu-Doula, Matha; Chad: Goulaye; Mali: Songhai; Niger: Songhai; Nigeria: Ebibio, Yoruba, Unknown; Senegal: Diola, Serer; Rwanda : Kiga-Toro; South Africa: Xhosa - Hirst (44); Tanzania: Chaga, Mwarusha; Togo: Akebu, Ewe; Uganda: Ganda, Busoga; Zambia: Lunda, Tonga]. Witchdoctors are involved, either to send the bees if you wish to punish somebody or to find out what is wrong and what you should do to deal with the problem. In Cameroon wild bees are sent to kill somebody who has sworn a false oath (45; p. 166). The Sara-Niellim in Chad have an accused person to put the hand in a beehive and when not stung he is not considered to be guilty (45; p. 116). In Senegal (Diola) for the independence of Casamance (Senegal) in 1980 (46; p. 305), there was a rumour that all persons being allochthones would be attacked. Therefore, they advised the Diola to tie a red string around the wrist. Although everybody was wearing the red string the bees eventually were not sent. Bees are also applied in warfare [Cameroon: Bolous; DRC: Mbochi, Teke; Nigeria: Tiv (47)], e.g. in Tchad when there was a war between the Moundang and the Foulbé or in Kenya when there was a fight between the Kamba and the Masai.
When a swarm of bees comes to the house it is mainly perceived as a bad omen showing that a terrible thing is about to happen to the family [Cameroon: Bassas; Kenya: Luo; Nigeria: Ngwa (47); Tanzania: Chaga, Mwarusha; Togo: Cotocoli]. However, some indicated that it could also be a sign of luck or richness (Kenya: Kikuyu; Tanzania: Chaga, Sukuma).
The arrival of single bee in the house who flies around somebody or which settles on somebody, is a sign of: 1) getting good news (Burkina Faso: Mossi; Cameroon: Bamileke; Chad: Goulaye; Madagascar; Mali: Mande-Malinke, Tuareg; Mozambique: Ronga; Niger: Hausa; Tanzania: Chaga, Iraqw, Digo, Mwarusha, Zanaki); 2) getting a visitor [Cameroon: Bamileke; Kenya: Kikuyu, Luo; Nigeria: Ibibio, Tiv - Dike and Onwuka (47); Rwanda: Toro; Senegal: Bainuk; Tanzania: Iraqw; Uganda: Bunyoro, Ganda, Busoga, Nyoro; Zambia: Tonga; Zimbabwe: Shona, Zezuru]; 3) or an ancestor (Burkina Faso: Mossi).
It was regularly mentioned that one must be careful with perfume as this agitates bees (Niger: Hausa, Kanuri; Sudan: RES). Also Ehrhardt (48) warned not to use perfumes and scented products that attracts and agitates bees and wasps.
Several ethnic groups in sub-Saharan Africa have the bee as their totem (45; p. 114), e.g. the Nandi in Kenya seem to be able to control the bees (49) or the Bakoanda in Zambia, who make beer from honey (50; p. 182).
I bought from a witch doctor at a local market in Lomé Togo a fetish which contained the powder of a bee and wasp. This was put in a small fetish called “Woanyinou” in Fon (Fig. 3). While conducting some rituals you must put it in your house as an assurance of two people (husband and wife) staying together (probably because it concerns social insects). The use of the bee as a fetish (amulet) was also mentioned in Benin (Goun).
Honey
Honey is mentioned in the Qur’an mainly because of the many medicinal values (51). Honey was mixed with ink in Islamic writings (52; p. 705, 53), for example by writing the verses of the Qur’an in Arabic on boards. The ink is washed off when they have finished to write a new text on the board. Believers often drink the water used to wash the board as it brings spiritual and medicinal benefits. When it is about intelligence one should put honey in the water (Gambia: Madinka; Niger: Hausa, Kanuri, Songhai; Senegal: Halpulaar). This water with honey is called “Nassi’ (54; p. 40) and according to an informant from Gambia the water should always be mixed with honey. In burials honey made be put in the graves or honey beer used in ceremonies for ancestors (Madagascar) (45; p. 111).
Ants
Ants or ant nests are very much associated with witchdoctors, in particular when one is bitten (Benin: Fon, Popo; Burkina Faso: Mossi; Cameroon: Bafia, Bamileke, Bolous; Niger: Hausa; Senegal: Diola; Togo: Ewe: Uganda: Ganda; Zanzibar). It is either that the ants are sent by witchdoctors to do harm or that they transform themselves into driver ants. The ant nests are also associated with devils or ancestors (Mali: Tuarag; Niger: Djerma), also to expel demons (Niger: Shonghai). Therefore, offers are made on the ant nest (Burkina Faso: Mossi; Mali: Senufo; Niger: Djerma; Togo: Cotocoli).
One informant from Togo (Mina) told me that when a baby is left in the shade under a tree and that the driver ants eat the baby that this is not an accident but that the driver ants were sent by somebody. In Chap. 16 of the book “Ants” by Hölldobler and Wilson (12) reference was made by somebody in Ghana who was told of an incident in which driver ants killed a baby left beneath a tree while its mother tilled the family garden. From Togo (RES) I was also told that wild animals also fear the driver ants. There is a proverb by the Yoruba in Senegal “if they unite, ants can kill an elephant” (55; p. 17). Another proverb indicates that a witchdoctor can eat everything except a driver ant (Togo: RES).
Driver ants maybe put on sensible places of the corps by witchdoctors as an ordeal to interrogate accused persons (56; p. 190). Driver ants are also used during circumcision in which soldier ants are up on the penis and the men must stay firm and not scream (Kenya: Kalenjin Tugen, Kamba). For female circumcision, Garnier and Fralon (56; p. 70) mention the use of ants.
Driver ants when coming to the house are considered a bad omen (Nigeria: Yoruba), e.g. a relative may die (Uganda: Busoga, Ganda, Nyoro; Zambia: Lozi) or a punishment (Kenya: Luo).
However, if you come across a trail of ants (driver ants or small ants), it may bring luck (Tanzania: Chaga) or fortune, in particular when they carry food or eggs (Chad: Goulaye; Tanzania: Iraqw; Togo: Akebu, Cotocoli; Zambia: Ila, Lunda, Namwanga, Tonga; Zimbabwe: Shona). In Nigeria (Tiv) when somebody encounters such an ant trail he will check whether they carry termites, because then his journey will be fortunate (57). In Zambia (Nkoya) when a hunter comes across a stink ant (Megaponera sp.) with booty, he knows he will soon bring back a lot of meat to the village (58; p. 27). It may also be a sign that the rain is coming (Burkina Faso: Mossi; Kenya: Kalenjin; Zanzibar). In Tchad (Ngambaye) it was mentioned that when the winged ants come out, that fishing will be excellent.
It was also mentioned several times in Niger (Hausa, Songhai) and Sudan (Gaälien) that the rainbow (snake) comes out of an ant nest and obstructs the rain. Rainbows are often associated with stopping the rain, e.g. in Kenya by the Luhyia (59; p. 77); this is a similar story told for termite mounds (15).
Many of my informants in Madagascar mentioned a story of ants and snakes. The story goes that when a snake enters a hole in the ground that the ants narrow the opening such that the snake cannot escape. Then they feed the snake and when well-fed, they devour the snake. The story is confirmed by Anderson (60; page 105) who indicated that the story is universally believed by the Malagasy. Missionaries apparently dissected ant nest to verify the story, however they were not able to confirm or deny it. There is even a very early publication (61), which tell this story and which stresses that the local population firmly beliefs in it. My informants indicated that it relates to the following endemic snakes: the blonde hognose snake, Leioheterodon modestus; and the Dumeril's boa or the Madagascar ground boa (Acrantophis dumerili). A recent scientific publication (62) may shed some light on the story. The ant Aphaenogaster swammerdami host the snake Madagascarophis colubrinus, in its nest and it is not being attacked. The likely reason is that the latter snake feeds on the blindsnake Madatyphlops decorsei, which is specialized in feeding on termites and ants. So, the ant protects their colonies against this blindsnake through symbiosis with M. colubrinus, which the Malagasy also call “the ant’s mother”.
In general, when you have tiny ants in the house it is good sign often in terms of money (Benin: Bariba, Nagot; Chad : Ngambaye; Mali: Songhai; Nigeria: Yoruba) while in Benin (Fon) associate this with twins and the ants are there to protect the house and one puts maize flour and red palm oil on their trail. Giving them grains is also a method to let them disappear (Senegal: Wolof).
The Bamileke in Cameroon practice “La Culte des Crânes,” based on devotion to the skulls of ancestors (63). Descendants must fulfil traditional duties with the ancestral skull, as ancestors can help descendants or punish them with illness or other misfortunes. One of my Bamileke informants from Cameroon told me that after five years they dig the skulls out and put them in a special house. Rituals are carried out, among which the use of palm oils which is poured over the skulls. It is considered a bad sign if the oil is not removed by ants (likely Myrmicaria opaciventris).
In Cameroon, a driver ant (Dorylus spp.) called “Jaglavak” is considered by the Mofu the chief of the Mandara Mountains of northern Cameroon, while other ants constitute "local chiefs" (28, 64). While the panther the Mofu chief are one and the same, the Jaglavak is held the role of "prince of insects." A sub-ethnic group of the Mofu, the Movo, because of an ancient alliance, are like the Jaglavak and feared for their power to harm. The ant is believed to aid the Movo in times of trouble, including cleaning up their compounds by chasing out vermin-infested dwellings.
Wasps
One mixes the ground up wasp or the nest with larvae in dog feed in order to make him more vicious (Burkina Faso: Mossi; Kenya: Kamba; Mozambique: Nchope, Tsonga-Changana; Rwanda: Toro; Uganda: Bunyoro, Ganda, Nyoro). Also it is believed that when a ground wasp is put on scars on the fist (Zambia: Lozi, Tonga; Zimbabwe: Ndebele, Shona, Zezuru) or to rub a wasp or the nest between the hands (Burkina Faso: Mossi; Niger: Hausa; Zambia: Lovale, Namwanga; Zimbabwe: Shona), that one can really hit somebody hard.
Women use wasp nests (in a drink) when they cannot become pregnant or when wanting to prevent an abortion (Togo: Ewe; Zambia: RES), to facilitate delivery (Zimbabwe: Shona) or against menstrual pain (Togo: Res).
In Madagascar it was generally considered that when a dauber wasp starts constructing his nest in the house that this is a good sign such as: a wife becoming or being pregnant (also mentioned in Burundi: Hutu), richness and prosperity. Informants from several other countries mentioned that you should absolutely leave a wasp nest in the house, as it protects the house and the owner against evil persons and against witches (Senegal: Bainuk, Diola; Cameroon: Bamileke, Bassas, Bolous; DRC: Mbochi; Tanzania: Iraqw). However, for other ethnic groups in the different countries the information was very contradictory: some leave the nests as a sign of prosperity and others remove them as it is considered a bad omen.
Tales and proverbs
Bees
One of the myths about honey by the Masay is: When God gave cattle to man, the first woman, Naiterogob, gave birth to their first child, the son Sindillo, who later helped his father in keeping the cattle. One day, when looking at a bee swarm in a hollow tree, the son discovered the honey and brought it to his fathers' kraal. Since then honey is food for the Masai (45; p. 110).
In Nigeria, practically all the 200.000 traditional healers use honey in some of their medical preparations. This is rooted in the cultural history of the people. The medicinal and spiritual value of honey can be found in the spiritual literature called “Ifa’ (65). The honeybee was sent by God from heaven to this earth. When the bee did not produce ‘children’ in the town Ile-Igbon she went to a place called Shaki where she found many trees with holes in it. She settled in one of them and laid eggs. When the population increased, they swarmed to other trees and from there to other places of the earth. The second chapter of ‘Ifa’ is called ‘Oyeke meji’ and an excerpt:
They were coming from heaven for a life on earth
They all feared the eminence of disease and infirmity on earth
They were asked to make rituals of appeasement and sacrifice
On getting to the earth
They were all free from disease and infirmity
As they were dancing in the home of Oyin (bee)
They were drumming in the house of Ado (a type of bee)
The home of Fuun-Fuun (another type of bee) was not less joyous
Who does not know that the home of the bee is never bitter?
No one puts honey in the mouth and frowns.
The different San people from southern Africa all have different creation myths but always the praying mantis plays an important role (66; p. 75) such as in this story: Mantis was sent to find the purpose of life when earth was covered with water and asked the bee to guide and carry him. However, Mantis was heavy and finally he put Mantis in the heart of a white flower. The bee planted the first seed of a human being in Mantis and then died. This was the story of the birth of the first San (67).
Proverbs dealing with bee or honey:
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'His words are as sweet as honey (hassel), but his deeds are like the smell of onions (Bassel)', so it rhymes for the Mahas in Sudan.
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“A newly born baby is given honey and Aloë in order to make it realize to meet both with sweet and bitter experiences in life” (Swahili) (68; p. 37)
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“The bee has not got two stings” (Kenya: Kikuyu) (69; p. 91). Greedy people who always want more.
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“Leave some honey for the honey bird who led you to it.” (South Africa: Zulu) (55; p. 55). This bird is called “the greater honeyguide, Indicator indicator (Piciformes: Indicatoridae), only occurring in sub-Saharan Africa and which leads human honey-hunters to wild bees’ nests (70). This to ensure that the bird can eat the eggs, larvae, and pupae and even wax (one of the few birds that can digest wax) left behind by the humans. Honey hunters always leave some honey for the honey bird. The bird is also mentioned by Seyffert (45; p. 24) and even encountered by Livingstone (71; p. 216) in 1855.
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“A little idleness caused the ruin of beehive” (55; p. 67). The Kikuyus hang beehives in the crowns of trees, but when you do not check in time, the unattended beehive loaded with honey may fall and the honey is lost.
Ants
In Benin, Nigeria, James Inneh, seventy-nine years old, formerly a businessman, was in 1962, named commander of the royal guards, “isienwenro”, by the king Akenzua. “Asako no s’oghionba” (ants sting the King’s enemies), was how the royal guards responsible for the King’s security, were called. During some rituals, they glide around the souverain, completely enveloping him like an army of ants (http://leconcurrent.over-blog.com/article-african-kings-47033015.html).
Some proverbs dealing with ants from different countries:
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“It is not possible for the soldier driver ant to put on the trousers of a giant, but it is possible for the soldier driver ant to remove the trousers of a giant”. Small things can cause severe damage (Nigeria: Yoruba).
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“I came across a long chain on the road but could not pick it up” (driver ants) (Swahili saying) (68)
Wasps
There are many stories about why the wasps has such a slender waste (see also the information given in the background) (Fig. 4) and why they cannot reproduce. People seem to associate this with their incapacity to reproduce (Cameroon: Beti-Eton; Chad: Ngambaye, Mbaye; Uganda: Luo, Ganda). One is that the wasp had a normal waste, but when many people passed on the road talking, he came out of the nest and placed his hands on his hips watching all this. He did it so long that his abdomen became constricted (almost two parts) (Nigeria: Yoruba). Another story from Senegal (Wolof) and Gambia: Jola. Mandinka) mentions that God was putting the soul in living beings and asked everybody to close the eyes during the event. But the wasp did not, reason that God took a rope and restricted the waist as a curse, so they could not get children anymore. Also mentioned by Ferry (72) in Senegal (Bedik, Mandinka) for the potter wasp Delta emarginatum. Therefore, the wasp must transform the insects brought to the nest to young wasps. Also, In Sudan (Rubatab) the restricted waste was mentioned as the cause of not being able to give birth, and that God therefore has given them as compensation the ability to collect caterpillars which can be transformed in wasps. In Burundi (Hutu) I was told that the wasp wanted to see the king, but the king refused, and the wasp started a hunger strike, reason that she is so thin. In Uganda: Bunyoro, Ganda, Nyoro) the resemblance with a wasp is also made when one adopts a child (not being able to have children of their own). In Uganda (Langi) there is also a story, that there was a feast in heaven. They had to fly and so the winged ones had to take the unwinged ones. So, the wasp got the elephant, but the weight of the elephant was so much that it caused the waste of the wasp to become restricted. The Bamileke in Cameroun (often mentioned that when parents are too occupied with their children: that they are like wasps, meaning that the children receive all the food they need but that the parents suffer (very thin). They (and the Toro in Rwanda) also call beautiful thin ladies, wasps.
There is a story of the Ila people from Zambia dealing with the mason wasp bringing fire from heaven (59; pp. 29–30, 73; p. 47). The birds and insects discussed how to get fire from heaven. So, a vulture, a fish eagle and a crow volunteered. However, only the mason wasp survived and rested after 30 days on a cloud. God observed and took pity on him, gave him fire, and told him to always build a house for his children near a fireplace, leave the eggs and return after several days to observe that the eggs change into wasps.
In Chad (Sara-Niellim) a story was told that the bee is intelligent, and that the wasp talks too much. The wasp did not have the patience to listen to the bee how he constructs the hive. The wasp only said, yes, I know. Therefore, the wasp knows how to construct a nest, but not how to collect honey. This to indicate people who do not have the patience to listen to somebody.
A proverb from The Fulani in Senegal: “The children do not exactly look like their parents, but they have their personality” (74). This corresponds with the story from Senegal at the beginning of this paragraph in which caterpillars are transformed in wasps.
Art
In South Africa, there are many rock paintings depicting the activities of Stone Age honey hunters have recently been discovered and recorded, depicting bees, honeycombs, and bees’ nests or hives (75). Ladders were used and one shows a man with a bag on his shoulder climbing towards a cavity or nest from which many bees are flying.
In Cameroon (Bamileke, Beti-Eton) it was mentioned that Oecophyla ants are used by young girls to perform better the traditional dance.
In DRC (Mbochi) and in Nigeria (Yoruba) children trap a bee or bumblebee, put it a matchbox. When moving the box, the bee makes a buzzing sound, like music.
When San children from the central Kalahari caught a winged driver ant (Dorylus sp.), they put a twig in the anus and by the movements of the ant with its wings sing “let us take of the sister’s skirt and drink her urine together (26).