Actually you've got it backwards. Surface tension is going to pull an isolated cell into a circle as it minimizes length. Of the cell walls. When the circular cells are adjacent. The hexagon shape minimizes the length of the cell walls for adjacent cells
dougglatt69 t1_jefzzr2 wrote
Reply to comment by pongnguy in TIL: honeycombs start out circular, and the surface tension of the beeswax pulls them into hexagons as it solidifies, because it is the most energetically favorable conformation. by craigdahlke
Actually you've got it backwards. Surface tension is going to pull an isolated cell into a circle as it minimizes length. Of the cell walls. When the circular cells are adjacent. The hexagon shape minimizes the length of the cell walls for adjacent cells