Article Nº 0004 Insect, spider or other land arthropod Vol. I · p. 8
Bee (Apis mellifica)
Original title: Abelha (Apis mellifica)
The honeybee in Madeira, whose honey was praised by the traveller Barrow and sent to Portugal as a prized gift.
An insect of the order Hymenoptera. In the account of Barrow’s travels we read: ‘in the pleasant valleys of Madeira, where the most varied wild flowers abound, the honey from the hives is extraordinarily delicious, and it is sent to Portugal as one of the most prized of gifts’. An old warrant (provisão) of the captains-general forbade the hives to be robbed of their honey before the grape harvest.