A plaque with your name
Recognized at the stingless bee sanctuary where your hive lives — physical proof that this colony is sustained by you.
Adopt a hive · Managed-box species · Illota
Meet the Illota
Rare in the Stingless bee sanctuary — every adopted colony helps the community learn more about her.
About this species
About the Illota
Illota is one of the less-studied stingless-bee species the Kukama meliponicultoras manage in rational hives. Adopting an Illota colony funds both day-to-day care of the box and the species-level monitoring needed to share knowledge with other Amazon communities.
How your donation helps
Every contribution funds real work.
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Replacement of the wooden hive box and routine inspections
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Monitoring datasheets and supplies for the meliponicultoras
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Transport for community members to ARI training workshops
As a supporter
What you receive in return
Every hive you adopt is home to 2,000–4,000 stingless bees. Here's what comes back to you in return:
Annual reports
A yearly update on how your colony is doing — surviving, growing, producing.
Photos and videos
Periodic field updates from the tree, hive, or rational box you support.
Knowing you're protecting bees
The lasting satisfaction of safeguarding a keystone species of Amazonian forests.
The community's story
A profile of the Indigenous community stewarding your hive, in their own voice.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What every donor wants to know before adopting a Illota colony.
What does "adopt" actually mean?
It is a symbolic adoption: your contribution funds the protection of the bees, their habitat, and the Indigenous family that cares for them. You do not gain legal ownership of the colony — the impact is conservation, not possession.
Where is the hive located?
In the Stingless bee sanctuary maintained by the Kukama community of San Francisco, Pacaya Samiria buffer zone, Loreto Region, Peru. Rational hives are kept in managed wooden boxes alongside the natural forest.
Who cares for the hive?
Indigenous Kukama Kukamiria families trained in sustainable meliponiculture. Their work combines ancestral knowledge with modern monitoring techniques.
What do I receive?
A digital adoption certificate, an introduction to the host community, biological information about the species and the tree where it nests, and monthly photo/video updates.
Can I gift the adoption?
Yes. At checkout you can personalize the certificate for the recipient’s name of your choice.