Abejas mayas 2.0.1

This bilingual (Maya-Spanish) application promotes the cultivation and conservation of stingless bees native to the Maya region.

The native bees of the Maya area lack stingers, with one species, Melipona beecheii, having been managed by the Maya for over two thousand years. This ancestral cultivation practice is known as Maya meliponiculture. The application aims to support the preservation of this traditional knowledge and practice.

“Abejas Mayas” offers two interactive modes: virtual reality, which provides detailed information about Melipona beecheii, also known in Yucatec Maya as Xunaan Kab, its hive, and its products; and a virtual honey harvest using techniques that date back to pre-Hispanic times. The augmented reality feature allows users to enter a colony of these bees, explore their interior, including breeding and storage areas where nectar is transformed into honey and pollen is stored.

The augmented reality marker can be downloaded at: www.iifl.unam.mx/abejasmayas