Killer bees responsible for 300 attacks each month
During a walk in the woods last week, the subject of Africanized bees came up. I asked my fellow hikers what was the worst bee attack they had ever heard about.
Veteran excursionista Mario Guerrero responded, “Without a doubt, it was the death of Enedino Luna.” Luna, he explained, had been a guide and trainer for Grupo Colli, Guadalajara’s most active organization for hiking and camping. Approximately 12 years ago, Luna took a group of young climbers into the hills near Magdalena to practice rappelling. “He stood on the edge of a cliff supervising the descent of the others. Somehow the rappellers disturbed a hive of bees on the way down and were immediately attacked. They responded by sliding down the rope even faster, and managed to reach the bottom and escape. Unfortunately, the bees also swarmed upwards, discovered Enedino Luna at the top of the drop and totally engulfed him.
“You have to visit La Estación Bicicleta,” I was told again and again by friends who know the Primavera Forest well. “It’s such a cool place and they have a restaurant, too.”
Jaime Villa is a farmer who decided two years ago to start a wildlife sanctuary in the foothills of the Tequila Volcano. “The land,” he explained, “belongs to our ejido and it’s too rocky for farming. However, it’s extraordinarily beautiful and home to all kinds of animals and birds. So we applied to the government to set up a Management Unit for Wildlife Conservation (Unidad de Manejo para la Conservacion de Vida Silvestre or UMA) on 433 hectares of the land and our petition was granted. During the last two years, with the help of a grant, we’ve created a nature trail 350 meters long, a site for camping and picnicking, a hanging bridge, and a mirador with a spectacular view.”