What do bees collect from flowers to make honey?

Bees collect nectar from flowers to make honey.

Nectar is a watery, sugar-rich liquid produced by plant glands called nectaries. Foraging worker bees draw it up with their proboscises and store it temporarily in a special crop, often called the honey stomach. They then carry it back to the hive, where other workers process it with enzymes and pass it between bees.

The nectar is spread into honeycomb cells and gradually dehydrated. Bees fan their wings to move air through the hive, reducing the liquid’s water content until it becomes thick honey. Once mature, the bees seal the cell with a wax cap. Honey supplies concentrated carbohydrates that fuel flight, hive activity, and survival during periods when flowers are scarce.

Pollen is an important bee food, but it is not the main raw material for honey. Bees collect pollen mainly for protein and fat, especially to feed developing larvae. Water may also be collected for drinking, brood care, and cooling the hive. A less familiar exception is honeydew honey, made from sweet secretions associated with sap-feeding insects rather than directly from floral nectar.