Investigation of sugar spectrum in honey-sac content and honey

The sugar spectrum was investigated by HPLC in honey-sac contents of 52 fieldbees and in honey of a specially prepared colony. The origin of the honey-sac content was determined from the pollen species. The sugar spectrum has a typical frequency from the most frequent honey plants. A good correlation between the honey-sac content of the fieldbees and the honey produced in the experimental hive was found by consideration of enzyme effect (tables II and III). Liquid honeydew collected had a high sucrose content (49.42 ± 5.56%), but honeydew cristallized in the honey-sac of the stored bees (-18°C) within less than 2 wk had a lower sucrose (20.47 ± 4.78%) but a much higher melecitose content (41.12 ± 2.19% to 19.99 ± 4.10% in honeydew liquid). In this colony more than 90% of sucrose and only 30% of the melezitose collected from the bees could be inverted. The sugar spectrum of the honey-sac content provides information about the botanical origin. On the basis of the sugar spectrum of the honey the botanical origin can also be estimated