Meet the greater honeyguide
You would not know from looking at it that the greater honeyguide is a special bird.
This bird lives in woodland habitats across sub-Saharan Africa. It does not have the bright flashy colors of a macaw or the fancy tail feathers of a bird of paradise.
The greater honeyguide’s scientific name (Indicator indicator) hints at why it is special. This bird behaves in a unique way. When a greater honeyguide finds a bee nest in the hollows of a tree, it flies off and looks for a person. The honeyguide makes a special call. If the person understands, they call back and follow the honeyguide.
The bird and the honey-hunter continue to call to each other. The person follows the honeyguide to a tree. The bird flies into the tree and indicates (shows off) a nest full of honey.
After the bird reveals the bee nest, the honey-hunter climbs the tree, hacks open the nest with an axe, and scoops out the golden honey. The bird then gets to feast on beeswax, bee eggs, and bee larvae (baby bees).
The greater honeyguide and person help each other get something to eat. This is a rare example of a wild animal leading a person to food. Helping each other in this way is called mutualism.
How honeyguides help people in Mozambique
Research from 2025 shows the economic importance of wild honeyguide birds to villages in northern Mozambique. Mozambique is a country in southeastern Africa.
Jessica van der Wal and her research team studied the relationship between honeyguides and people in Niassa Special Reserve. The researchers interviewed 141 honey hunters in 13 villages. They also used data collected by community wildlife guardians. Since 2021 the wildlife guardians have recorded the amount of honey collected by honey-hunters with help from honeyguides.
Jessica and team found that honeyguides help people find three-quarters of the honey collected in Niassa. They found that around 500 honey-hunters collect 14,000 liters (3,700 gallons) of honey per year with the help of honeyguides. Honey-hunters in all 47 villages in the reserve get help from the birds.
Some of this honey is sold. “It’s quite a vital income and an addition to other livelihood options they have, such as fishing and farming,” explains Jessica.
The honey harvest was valued at more than $23,000 in 2018 and more than $40,000 in 2023. Most of the 67,000 people who live in Niassa Special Reserve live on less than $2 a day. This means the money earned from honey sales makes a big difference in the community. A little brown bird, the greater honeyguide, helps make this possible.
David Brown adapted this story for Mongabay Kids. It is based on an article by Ryan Truscott published on Mongabay News.
