Jinsi nyuki wanavyotengeneza asali

Nyuki wa asali ni wadogo, lakini hufanya kazi kwa bidii sana. Nyuki mfanyakazi huruka kutoka ua hadi ua siku nzima. Hunywa utomvu mtamu kutoka kwenye maua kwa ulimi wake mrefu. Utomvu huo mtamu huitwa nekta, na nyuki huuhifadhi kwenye tumbo maalum.

Honeybees are small, but they work very hard. A worker bee flies from flower to flower all day. It drinks the sweet juice from the flowers with its long tongue. This sweet juice is called nectar, and the bee keeps it in a special stomach.

Akiwa amerudi mzingani, nyuki humpa nekta nyuki mwingine. Hupitisha kutoka mdomo hadi mdomo na kuongeza kitu kidogo kutoka mwilini mwao. Kisha huweka nekta kwenye vyumba vidogo vya nta. Nyuki husogeza mabawa yao haraka ili kuikausha, na polepole nekta hugeuka asali nzito.

Back at the hive, the bee gives the nectar to other bees. They pass it from mouth to mouth and add a little something from their bodies. Then they put the nectar into small wax rooms. The bees move their wings fast to dry it, and slowly the nectar becomes thick honey.

Asali inapokuwa tayari, nyuki hufunga kila chumba kidogo kwa kifuniko laini cha nta. Asali sasa ni chakula cha mzinga mzima wakati wa baridi kali. Nyuki mmoja mdogo hutengeneza tone dogo tu katika maisha yake, hivyo nyuki lazima wafanye kazi pamoja ili kujaza mzinga.

When the honey is ready, the bees close each little room with a soft wax lid. The honey is now food for the whole hive in the cold winter. One small bee makes only a tiny drop in its life, so the bees must work together to fill the hive.