Nghe An: Strange kapok tree has 30 honey bee colonies making nests

The kapok tree of Mrs. Nguyen Thi Hoan's family in village 4, Thanh Son commune has nearly 30 honey bee hives living there. Photo: Thai Hien

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoan, the owner of the kapok tree, shared: Her family's kapok tree was planted in 1979, and is now 39 years old, with a trunk that is 40 meters tall. Three years ago, this kapok tree suddenly had 3 colonies of bees coming to make a nest. And since then, every May, the kapok tree has welcomed dozens of colonies of bees to take shelter.

In 2017 alone, 46 bee colonies chose the kapok tree as their “home”, the bees built nests here and flew away to avoid the cold in October. This is the time when bees start to build nests, and up to now, there are nearly 30 bee colonies on the tree. What is quite special is that although there are many trees around, the bees only come to “build houses” on Mrs. Hoan’s kapok tree and live together very peacefully.

Among the nearly 30 honey bee hives, the largest is up to 1.5 m long and nearly 1 m wide; the smallest is nearly 0.5 m long and 0.3 m wide. Photo: Thai Hien

According to our records, among the nearly 30 honey bee hives, the largest one is 1.5 m long and nearly 1 m wide; the smallest one is nearly 0.5 m long and 0.3 m wide. And according to Ms. Hoan, the number of hives will continue to increase in the coming time because every day she monitors, she sees new bee colonies coming to build hives.

Mr. Tran Van Duong - Vice Chairman of Thanh Son Commune People's Committee said: At this time of year, many bees come to reside on the kapok tree of Mrs. Nguyen Thi Hoan in Village 4. Because it is located on the main road of the commune, it has attracted the attention of passersby. Many people have come to offer to buy the beehives, but Mrs. Hoan's family has refused to sell. She believes that this is not only a strange thing but also a lucky thing for her family and she must take responsibility for protecting these special bee colonies.