Quang Nam During the wasp nesting season, people in Tien Phuoc district wear protective clothing into the forest to catch and raise them to kill insects in the garden and sell pupae.
At 4 a.m., Pham Van Chien, 35, and Le Hoang Day, 42, from Tien Canh Commune, Tien Phuoc District, brought protective gear and tools for hunting in the forest. They drove their motorbikes to the mountainous commune of Tra Giac, Bac Tra My District, more than 30 km from their home to hunt for hornet nests.
Mr. Pham Van Chien puts the beehive in a bag and takes it home to raise. Photo: Dac Thanh
Leaving their motorbikes at the edge of the forest, Mr. Chien and Mr. Day split up and went their separate ways. The sun had not yet risen above the mountains, so they chose an open space and watched the bees fly to find the direction of the nest. This was the easiest time to observe, as by noon or afternoon the sunlight was too bright to see.
Wasps, scientifically known as Vespa affinis , are a species of wasp. They often choose nesting locations in secluded areas, dense vegetation, and rugged terrain. Nesting time is from early May to September of the lunar calendar. At the beginning of the season, the queen bee chooses a suitable location, lays eggs, and takes care of the eggs to create a colony. When the young wasps reach adulthood, they will continue to hunt and build nests.
Carnivorous wasps often go to places where there are insects such as worms, butterflies, spiders and larvae to hunt. With more than 10 years of experience hunting wasps, Mr. Chien is familiar with the areas where many wasps make nests. Stopping at places with many flowers, he observes each wasp catching prey and follows them back to their nests. In addition to the predators, there are worker bees who find dry, rotten branches to bring back to build nests.
Hunter finds and catches hornet nest. Video: Dac Thanh
At noon, the two hunters went to puddles and streams to observe the bees taking water to track down their nests. "When bees fly close to the nests, they often swoop down, so we can determine where they are. If we go closer and observe where many bees are flying out, we will know their location," said Mr. Chien. However, it is not always possible to find the nests. The hunters can only observe them flying close by, but cannot see them when they fly far away.
Unlike Mr. Chien, Mr. Day went to a place where many flowers bloomed. In the morning, bees came to collect pollen, suck nectar, and attract many wasps to come hunt. Mr. Day used a piece of pork tied to a tree branch to lure the wasps to come eat. "This is called bee fishing, waiting for them to hunt for food for a long time, so the craftsmen invented this method. They eat the meat very quickly and then bring it back, I just need to observe the direction of flight to find the nest," he said.
Mr. Le Hoang Day uses pork to lure bees to eat. Photo: Dac Thanh
After half an hour of searching, the two men discovered a hornet's nest in a dense bush. Chien, wearing specialized protective gear worth more than 1.3 million VND, approached and used pliers to cut the branch containing the nest. "Hornets are highly toxic and can kill people. That's why they are also called the grim reaper," Chien said.
Each day, the two workers found at most 8 and at least 2 hives. The hives were taken out of the bushes and hung nearby to wait for the bees to fly in. After half an hour, Mr. Chien covered the hives with a mesh bag and took out both the hives and the bees.
The beehives brought home are hung on tree branches in the garden. Mr. Chien said that thanks to the beehives raised in the garden, there are no more pests that harm the crops. After raising the bees for more than a month, he started to harvest the pupae. The nest has many layers, when harvested, the top layer will be left for them to continue building. Each season, a nest can be harvested 2-3 times, since the beginning of the season, he has raised nearly 50 nests.
The beehive was brought by Mr. Chien to raise in the garden. Photo: Dac Thanh
In addition to raising wasps, he also sells them to many people in the area for 250,000 VND for large nests and 150,000 VND for small nests. Each nest after three months brings in about 400,000 VND in income. Traders buy bee pupae for more than 300,000 VND per kilogram to sell to restaurants and pubs to make many dishes such as porridge, stir-fry, and fry.
Wasp catching also faces many dangers. Recently, there have been many critical cases and deaths due to stings from this species. Doctors warn that wasp venom is very toxic and can cause anaphylactic shock, hemolysis, hematocrit, blood clotting disorders, muscle damage, severe kidney damage... If not treated promptly, the victim's life can be in danger.
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