R1, South Africa, 2011, Gold - African Honey Bee

The theme on the 2011 R1 Gold Coin is the African honey bee (Apis mellifera scutellata). The African bee is being threatened by the introduction of the Cape Honey Bee (Apis mellifera capensis), which can infiltrate and lay her eggs in the host African Honey Bee colony. The resulting new parasitic workers increase in number, eventually leading to the death of the host colony on which they depend.

Due to modern farming methods, habitat loss, disease and global warming and the subsequent loss of bee colonies, there is now a serious worldwide threat to the pollination of flowers and food production crops. A recent study showed that climate change may prevent bees from carrying out the vital job of pollination by upsetting their life cycles.

The dramatic decline in worldwide honeybee colonies has forced some growers to resort to pollination by hand! Crops such as apples, pears and berries are entirely dependent on pollinators for fruit production, while in crops like sunflowers, peppers and tomatoes, visits by pollinating bees improve the quality and quantity of fruit and seeds produced.

Coin Specifications

Certificate of Authenticity

Each coin has a Certificate of Authenticity. The certificate describes the coin’s specifications, the year, the limited edition as well as a short description of the product. It also depicts the signature of the South African Mint’s Managing Director, Mr Andile Mvinjelwa. To prevent the duplication of a South African Mint product, the certificates are re-designed each year to include the coin design and each certificate is individually numbered according to the limited edition of the coin or set. As another security measure, the South African Mint’s logo, which is printed in transparent ink and only visible under ultra-violet light, features as part of the layout.