“Honey hunter” Mi Qiaoyun stands on a makeshift ladder while collecting wild honey from cliff-side hives in Dehong prefecture, Southwest China’s Yunnan province on May 11. Photo: VCG

Ma Yongde, a honey hunter, smokes bees out of their cliff-side hives on May 10. Photo: VCG

A makeshift ladder hangs from a cliff on May 10. Finding hives is getting harder as bee populations are hit by pesticides and global warming. Photo: VCG

Ma climbs up a ladder on May 30. Photo: VCG

A honey hunter holds a large piece of honeycomb collected from a cliff-side hive on May 10. Photo: VCG

Ma drinks from a stream on May 31. Photo: VCG

A honey hunter holds a rope used to climb cliffs on May 10. Photo: VCG

Honey hunters clean honeycomb on May 31. Photo: VCG