WEBVTT - How do honeybees make honey?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff from how stuff Works dot com

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<v Speaker 1>where smart Happens. Hi Am Marshall Brain with today's question,

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<v Speaker 1>how do honey bees make honey? A honey bee starts

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<v Speaker 1>the honeymaking process by visiting a flower and gathering some

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<v Speaker 1>of its nectar. Many plants use nectar as a way

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<v Speaker 1>of attracting insects like bees, wasps, and butterflies to stop

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<v Speaker 1>at the flower. In the process of gathering the nectar,

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<v Speaker 1>the insect transfers pollen grains from one flower to another

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<v Speaker 1>and pollinates the flower. Most flower nectars are similar to

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<v Speaker 1>sugar water sucros mixed with a lot of water. Nectars

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<v Speaker 1>can contain other beneficial substances as well. To make honey,

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<v Speaker 1>two things have to happen. First, enzymes that the bees

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<v Speaker 1>produced turn the sucros, which is a die sac ride,

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<v Speaker 1>into glucose, which is a monos sac ride. Second, most

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<v Speaker 1>of the moisture has to be evaporated out of the nectar,

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<v Speaker 1>leaving only about eighteen percent water in honey. The enzyme

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<v Speaker 1>is called invertase. It breaks sucrose, which is generally made

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<v Speaker 1>of two glucose molecules apart, into their separate glucose molecules.

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<v Speaker 1>Another enzymes that the bees produce is able to convert

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<v Speaker 1>some of the glucose into gluconic acid and hydrogen peroxide,

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<v Speaker 1>both of which act as preservatives. Bees evaporate the water

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<v Speaker 1>out of the honey by putting small drops of it

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<v Speaker 1>on the comb and fanning it with their wings. The

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<v Speaker 1>effect is to make honey a very stable food. It

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<v Speaker 1>naturally resists mold, fungi, and other bacteria, allowing it to

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<v Speaker 1>last for years without refrigeration. For more on this and

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<v Speaker 1>thousands of other topics. Because it how stuff works, dot

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