Honey production is a complex chain of biological and chemical processes. We understand how flower nectar turns into a treat thanks to the work of bees.
Many plants have so—called nectaries - honey glands that secrete sugary juice — nectar. Most often they are located in flowers, but sometimes they can be in other places. For example, the linden glands are located at the base of the leaves.
Sweet nectar attracts Scientists Say: Nectar / Science News Explores bees and other pollinating insects, as well as birds and bats. While the creature drinks sugar juice, pollen settles on the body. The animal transfers it to another flower and thus fertilizes the plant. It turns out that nectar is a kind of bait and payment of the plant world for the opportunity to reproduce. Although this is not the only function of natural syrup.
A bee colony is a whole world with its own rules, distribution of positions and responsibilities. Lives in the same family in the summer Fun Facts / American Bee Journal from 40 to 60 thousand individuals, and matriarchy reigns in it. At the head of the colony is the queen bee — the only female who is responsible for the birth of offspring. Several thousand fertile male drones are circling around her.
The remaining tens of thousands of bees are working to feed the whole family and make a supply of food for the winter. It is these individuals who are engaged in the production of honey. Hard workers share How Bees Turn Flower Nectar Into Honey / ThoughtCo for gatherers and receiving bees. The first ones leave the hive, look for nectar and bring it home, and the second ones take the prey and put it on the honeycomb.
Honey production runs from about mid-spring to mid-autumn. At this time, the collecting bee leaves the hive and goes in search of nectar. Finding a suitable flower, she lowers her long proboscis into the nectar and drinks the sweet juice. At the same time, it gets How Bees Turn Flower Nectar Into Honey / ThoughtCo by no means into the stomach of an insect , but into a special storage — a honey goiter. The bee continues to flit from one plant to another until it fills the inner reservoir with nectar. In one flight she has to fly around Fun Facts / American Bee Journal on average from 50 to 100 flowers. Even with a loaded storage, the worker is able to reach speeds of more than 24 km/h.
The nectar gets into the goiter together with enzymes of bee saliva. They help W. M. A. Alaerjani, S. Abu‑Melha, R. M. H. Alshareef, B. S. Al‑Farhan, H. A. Ghramh, B. M. A. Al‑Shehri, M. A. Bajaber, K. A. Khan, M. M. Alrooqi, G. A. Modawe, M. E. A. Mohammed. Biochemical Reactions and Their Biological Contributions in Honey / Molecules the breakdown of complex carbohydrates. For example, due to invertase, sucrose is converted into simple glucose and fructose. Glucose oxidase separates glucose into gluconic acid and hydrogen peroxide (it is no longer present in the finished honey, but at the start of "production" this component protects the contents of the goiter from pathogenic microorganisms). Finally, amylase breaks down starch.
With a full belly, the collector returns How Bees Turn Flower Nectar Into Honey / ThoughtCo to the hive. It is as if it regurgitates partially fermented nectar, and it is also sucked in through the proboscis by the receiving bee. The processing of the product continues in her honey crop. Domestic individuals transfer nectar to each other — so moisture also evaporates in the process. Everything continues until the water content in the future honey drops to about 20%. It can take from 8 to 10 days. After that, the bee sends the processed nectar to the honeycomb.
Then the insects shift the product from cell to cell many times. They work intensively with their wings, helping moisture evaporate faster. And this is also facilitated by the heat inside the hive — about 33-35 degrees. If you hear a characteristic long buzzing from the house, it means that the bees are working hard on harvesting honey.
Due to fermentation, air circulation from flapping wings and exposure to high temperature, the nectar loses water, thickens and turns into honey. When the mass reaches the desired consistency, the domestic bee seals the full cell with wax, which is produced by special glands in the abdomen of the individual. Honey matures in the honeycomb and is stored until the insects need food. They usually spend an inviolable supply in the cold season. However, sometimes this happens in the summer (for example, in a drought), when they do not have the opportunity to extract nectar.
The age of the honey bee is short—lived: in the cold season — about 6 months, in the warm season - about 4 weeks. During its short life, the insect manages to Fun Facts / American Bee Journal produce approximately 1/12 teaspoons of honey. At the same time, one bee family is able to make about 90 kg of honey per year. Although the amount may vary up or down depending on the climate, weather conditions, bee species and other factors.
