The harvesting and commercialization of kroto (Oecophylla smaragdina) in the Malingping area, West Java, Indonesia

Nicolas Césard (1)

1 Dynamiques environnementales entre forêt, agriculture et biodiversité : des pratiques locales sur la nature aux politiques de conservation

The Asian weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina) larvae and pupae are collected in the wild from trees and commercialised as songbird food and fishing bait in Java, Indonesia. The produce called kroto brings substancial income to numerous rural households throughout the year. The resource's durability is until ensured by the species' distribution (various ecosystems and polycalic structure of the nests), the constraints for collection (inaccessibility of small nests and ants'aggressive behaviour) and the limited number of collectors. However, constraints related to storage and transportation of the resource, retailer's margins and a policy on animal trade (i.e., birds) are limiting the benefits of commercialisation for collectors.

Domaines: Anthropologie sociale et ethnologie

Nicolas Césard. The harvesting and commercialization of kroto (Oecophylla smaragdina) in the Malingping area, West Java, Indonesia. Koen Kusters, Brian Belcher. Forest Products, Livelihoods and Conservation: Case-Studies of Non-Timber Forest Product Systems. Asia., Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), pp.61-77, 2004, Volume 1. ⟨hal-00129615⟩