Nectar is a
sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called
nectaries, either within the
flowers with which it attracts
pollinating animals, or by
extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal
mutualists, which in turn provide antiherbivore protection. Common nectar-consuming
pollinators include
bees,
butterflies and
moths,
hummingbirds, and bats. Nectar plays an important role in the foraging economics and overall evolution of nectar-eating species; for example, nectar and its properties are responsible for the differential evolution of the African honey bee,
A. m. scutellata and the
western honey bee.