In Chongqing, China, beekeeper She Ping thought the best way to promote his honey business was covering himself in hundreds of thousands of bees. Seems to have worked, no?
"Bee bearding" originally started in the 19th century with beekeepers attracting live bees to their faces and "wearing" them as beards. Now, it's spread to full body suits. The bee beard technique is achieved by putting a cage with a queen bee on their body. This attracts a swarm of bees, and the bee beards must remain perfectly still.
During the stunt, She was stung over twenty times, but told AFP, "It hurt but I didn't dare to move." To get ready for his stunt, the honey merchant did not shower as soap can make the insects excitable.
[Photos: AFP]
"To be honest I felt very nervous, but I do it to promote my honey," said She, a third-generation beekeeper. "I'm used to dealing with bees... and started these activities when I was about 22."
His real-life bee suit weighed in excess of one hundred pounds. But this wasn't a first for She. International Business Times reports that in 2012 the beekeeper attracted 331,000 bees in a similar stunt, resulting in a 73-pound bee suit.
As impressive as these attempts are, Vipin Seth from India holds the world record with a 135-pound bee suit made up of over 600,000 bees.
Chinese man covered with 460,000 bees for honey stunt [AFP]
ミツバチ46万匹まとう「ハチ男」、中国 [AFP Japan]
Chinese Beekeeper She Ping Sets World Record for Heaviest 'Insect Coat'[International Business Times]
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