Bees too are addicted to caffeine

So, the strategy behind plants giving pollinators caffeine is that it helps them learn the connection between their different smell and the nectar they provide.

They used a sucrose solution both with and without the realistic doses of caffeine and found honey bees forage more at caffeinated sources and do their “waggle dance” to direct their mates to it too.

Francis Ratnieks, a senior member of the research team from the University of Sussex, cited previous research that demonstrated the memory boost provided to bees by caffeine to explain his new discovery.

Caffeine is usually found in the nectar of citrus and coffee plants.

According to the study, one of the nectar contained an “unscented sucrose solution” and the other one had caffeine at a concentration found naturally in nectar.

Humans aren’t the only ones who like caffeine.

Based on their observations of the individual bees’ behaviours, the researchers’ model suggests that caffeinated nectar could reduce honey production in colonies if indeed plants reduce the sweetness of their nectar.

There is a down side to caffeine addicted bees. They were also less inclined to search for other resources, which puts them at risk if a particular food source runs out. They were persistent, energetic, and, like many people who find a new amusing cat video, eager to share it with everyone else. The caffeine caused the bees to act as though the source of nectar was richer in sugar and higher in quality.

“The duped pollinators forage and recruit accordingly”, said Schurch. The solution containing the caffeine resulted in honeybees who were attracted to it quadrupling the number of waggle dances that they did, according to New Scientist.

Many plants – not just coffee – have caffeine in their leaves, stems and seeds.

The honeybees are effectively tricked and exploited, by being entranced into pollinating the same plants over and over again instead of varying their paths.

“If they’ve had caffeine, they’re less likely to check the surrounding area”, Couvillon says. In a few cases, it turns out, the relationship may be more akin to drug dealer and junkie. That bitter taste is also in the nectar to make sure the bees move quickly from flower to flower. They will want to keep going back to the flowers containing caffeine, benefiting those trousers, but not improving the efficiency of the colony.