The article is a good snapshot (including pictures) in time of one situation.  Lest the uninformed think of it as unique, the Meliponini have been used in traditional Meliponiculture for centuries.  Some cultures housed a variety of species in hives, and some kept hives in "apiaries", others raided nests.  In the past decades, in almost every country in Latin America, biologists and conservationists have worked on hive designs to "rationally" keep these bees, harvesting without damaging the colonies.  And now NGOs step into the scene....

One issue makes the transfer of wild nests into man-made hives difficult.  Phorid flies opportunistically lay eggs in the colonies during the phase where the nests are open and not being well patrolled by bees.

And yes, the stingless part of these bees does not mean they are defenseless.  They can bite and also secrete strong irritants on raiders of all sorts.  And members of the Lestrimellita genus will raid other colonies of other species.  Their attack on small Apis nuclei for queen mating studies in the Venezuelan lowlands was intense and memorable.  Also the odor of their attack compounds smeared all over the victim nuc combs.

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