209which is home to a daiya , a malevolent female spirit), Kembarre (a rocky outcrop or
arre named after the kemba trees growing near it) and Thaṇiki.
In evergreen forest s , hejje:nu prefer to live on very tall trees, showing a marked
preference for the soravilu ( Acrocarpus fraxinifolius ), ba:ge and sele ( Albizzia odo-
ratissima , Albizzia lebbek ) trees. These two names were repeatedly offered by
Solega consultants from a number of widely-dispersed settlements, which suggests
that Apis dorsata colonies do indeed favour these species as potential nest sites.
Indeed, individual trees of these species may be well known across a range of Solega
settlements as je: nu mara or ‘ honey trees’, due to the fact that they are home to a
large number of hejje:nu colonies year after year. For instance, the Do:vu Ma:vu
Ba:ge is a single large Albizzia odoratissima found near Ko:li Ba:vi hill, which
attracts upto 50 hejje:nu colonies around the same time every year. An invitation to
go to Do:vu Ma:vu Ba:ge at the right time of year can only mean a honey-harvesting
trip; no further explanation is required. Interestingly, this particular tree derives its
name from the locality where it is situated, which, in turn, derives its name from
other trees that used to grow there in the past. The ma:vu of Do:u Ma:vu Ba:ge
indicates that a group of mango trees, presumably another important food source,
grew at this a spot (which, incidentally, lies next to a stream). Thus, the location,
which is itself identifi ed by the (former) presence of a particular kind of tree, is now
used to pinpoint the location of an individual of another tree species. Several other
‘ bee tree s ’ are known to the Solega (Sect. 3.8.2 ), and these, along with other loca-
tions where bees often nest, are remembered a mental map of honey-harvesting
sites. In the following passages, a single consultant (MRM) is asked to recall the
important honey-harvesting sites known to him, and the directions for getting to
these places. His monologue is transcribed here in its entirety because of the highly
detailed nature of his recall:
Ro:ḍe: ho:ga:du keḷeka, basappana kaḍaviga. Alli aranelli mara ade. Aranelli maradalli
ka:vala ha:kidivĩ. Je:nu ondu-eraḍu tinga ka:tivẽ. Eraḍu tinga ka:takki a:mele je:na
kuidivẽ. Adu doḍḍa koḷḷada aranelli... A:mele ha:geve keḷeka bandale, madyadalli de:varu
ade—basappã. Basappana keḷeka bandale beccarre ade. Beccarru bareli uwe je:na kuidivẽ.
Ade aḷḷave keḷeka bandale neḍeduru neḍeduru, keḷage iḍi haḷḷi bare ade. Iḍi haḷḷi bareli
je:na kuidivẽ.
You need to go downhill along the road, to Basapanna Kaḍavu. There’s an aranelli tree
( Garuga pinnata ) there. We keep watch at the aranelli tree. We wait one or two months for
the bees. After a couple of months, we harvest the honey. That’s the Doḍḍa Koḷḷada [big
valley] aranelli ... Then if you keep going down, there’s a holy site in the middle—[the god]
Basappã. Beccarre is downhill from there. We also harvest honey from Beccarre rock. If
you keep walking downhill along the stream, you get to Iḍi Haḷḷi rock. We collect honey
from Iḍi Haḷḷi rock as well.
Doḍḍa sampageyinda solpa munde ho:dale soravilu maradalli je: nu ade. Na:ku
soravilu—na:ku soravilinalli ondu eraḍu soravilu satto:tu, innondu eraḍu soravilu ade.
Innu ha:geve bandale mele guṇḍu sikkida abbili alli ondu soravilu mara ade. Adakka ondu
hattu je:nu banda:de. Innu ha:geve me:leka me:leka bandale alliga gombegallu bantu.
Gombegallinda me:leka bandale alli sikka sampage ade. Sikka sampage me:laḷa aravilu
beṭṭa ade. Alli ondu aḷḷa banda:de. Doḍḍa sampage aḷḷaka ue sikka sampage aḷḷaka uve
madya se:ridde adu. Sikka sampage aḷḷave me:leka ho:dale alli ondu aravilu kende ade.
Adakka ondu ippattu je:nu banda:de. Ada kuiduru bandivĩ. Aravilu beṭṭada keḷageve irada
mara. Ondu arre me:le ade a: mara. A:mele sikka sampage me:leka ho:ku. Me:leka