Lipid content of honey bee-collected pollen from south-east Australia

Abstract

The use of solvent extraction or petroleum spirits to extract lipids (fats) from 172 samples of honey bee-collected pollens provided a range of lipid contents from 0% for Eucalyptus macrorhyncha to 11.2% for Hypochoeris radicata. The mean for all 172 samples, representing 61 species, was 2.52%. The mean from 31 endemic species was 1.78%, whereas the mean for 30 exotic species was 4.13%. When pollens from 1 species, Echium plantagineum, were extensively surveyed, the lipid levels could be predictably estimated, falling within a range of 0.6 to 2.46% and a mean of 1.6%. A number of pollens from particular species consistently showed high levels of lipids, which were observed to be highly favoured by foraging honey bees. The pollens noted to be particularly attractive to foraging honey bees included Brassica napus (mean 7.1%), Sisymbrium officinale (mean 5.8%), Rapistrum rugosum (mean 6%) and Hypochoeris radicata (mean 7.2%).