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How do bees collect propolis?

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How do bees collect propolis?

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The bee bites off scraps of plant resin with her mandibles and packs them into the corbiculae (pollen baskets) on her hind legs. Each corbicula can carry about 10 mg of propolis. Because of its stickiness, propolis gathering is a slow business: it can take an hour to fill both baskets. Back at the hive, unloading can take another hour. Propolis is only collected when the temperature is above 18°C. Sometimes bees collect man-made materials and use these in the same way as ‘real’ propolis. For example bees will collect drying paints, road tar or varnish. Presumably to bees, these substances have a consistency and strong odour similar to plant resins. Do all honey bees collect propolis? No: Apis cerana is one honey bee species that does not use propolis. Different races of Apis mellifera use propolis to different extents: Apis mellifera caucasica is known for its high collection of propolis. So what exactly is in propolis? It is not possible to define propolis any more than it is possible

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