Staden's first report in 1557 on the collection of stingless bee honey by indians in Brazil

Abstract

In contrast to our knowledge on meliponiculture practiced by the Aztecs and Mayans, there is no authentic report concerning Brazilians during pre-Colombian times. A short note in Hans Staden's book published in 1557 is the first written information on honey collection by the indigenous people, illustrated here with copies from online facsimiles prepared by the University of São Paulo.