Foraging Bees Use Return Flight to Begin Honey Production

Honeybees Get to Work in Flight, Study Says
By Henry Fountain, The New York Times, 4/8/2008

Honey making is much like maple sugaring. The flower nectar collected by honeybees is similar to maple sap — a diluted sugar solution that becomes concentrated through the evaporation of most of the water.

With bees, most of the evaporation occurs in the hive. But a study from South Africa shows that in certain cases concentrating the nectar begins as early as the flight home from the flower…