Beeswax is secreted by four pairs of glands under the abdomen of worker bees.
It has more than two hundred chemical components.
Most are fairly high molecular-weight hydrocarbons similar to a plastic.
The wax is naturally white and is stained by the pollen, gums, resins and other things that bees collect.
Beeswax is akin to human earwax.
All insects secrete some protective wax, to coat their wings, for example.
Beeswax is simply the product of more specialized glands that enable bees to produce honeycombs.
