Fancy bees that build ultra-efficient spiral honeycombs

Archaeologists have established that in ancient Egypt, people were already engaged in beekeeping. Incredibly, this trend has been developing in agriculture for several thousand years. So, the ancient Egyptians used honey for embalming, and the Greeks - for canning products. Bees are common on absolutely all continents except Antarctica. To get 100 grams of a sweet treat, these honey workers go around about a million flowers. In other words, in one day, a bee is able to cover an area of over 12 hectares.

Every year, a lot of people suffer from bee stings, but there are completely harmless, stingless species. One of these is Tetragonula carbonaria. Representatives of these bees locate their hives in the hollows of large trees in Australia. The uniqueness of their homes is that they look like spirals twisted to the top. But these insects store honey not in hexagons, as usual, but in barrels - it is from them that the honeycombs are built. It is believed that this manner of construction improves air circulation and contributes to a more efficient distribution of internal space.

All walls of spiral hives are covered with a layer of resin with antibacterial action. The sticky composition with each bee returning to the hive removes all contaminants, including viruses and bacteria. In addition to everything, the same resin protects the bee dwelling from external enemies. With a mixture of resin, wax and soil, the guard bees mummify beetles and other invaders. They even try to attack humans with balls of this substance.

The honey plants of this species themselves look more like ordinary flies. The healthy honey from their barrels is distinguished by a particularly tart taste and delicious aroma.