Annual amount of nectar/honeydew collected
What is the annual amount of nectar/honeydew collected by a well-developed production colony?
- ~ 50–80 kg
- ~ 70–100 kg
- ~ 150–250 kg
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Correct answer: 3
It is estimated that a very well-developed production colony collects approximately ~150–250 kg of nectar/honeydew per year. This sugary liquid consists of about ~25 % carbohydrates and ~75 % water. After enzymatic transformations and the evaporation of large amounts of water, the workers produce about ~50–80 kg of honey with a moisture content close to ~20 %.
Of this production, around 40–50 kg of honey are used to feed the brood (at the peak of the rearing season, nurse bees consume up to 0.5 kg of honey per day), the cleaning bees and water carriers, the comb-building workers, those responsible for maintaining hive homeostasis (temperature and humidity), and the foragers, each of which performs up to 30 flights of 1 km per day for 15 days, i.e. a total of about 450 km…! The remaining honey production (capped and stored in the super) is harvested by the beekeeper.
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