May 9th, 2013

Bees get a buzz off caffeine

Honey bees fed a sugar solution containing caffeine, which exists naturally in the nectar of coffee and citrus flowers, were three times more likely to remember a flower’s scent than those feeding on just sugar; it boosts their memory and makes them better pollinators, according to a study in the journal, Science.

“Remembering floral traits is difficult for bees to perform at fast pace as they fly from flower to flower and we have found that caffeine helps the bee remember where the flowers are,” wrote Professor Geraldine Wright.

“In turn, bees that have fed on caffeine-laced nectar are laden with coffee pollen and these bees search for other coffee plants to find more nectar, leading to better pollination,” the Newcastle University neuroethologist said.

The effect of caffeine on the bees’ long-term memory was significant: three times as many bees remembered a floral scent 24 hours later and twice as many bees remembered the scent after three days.

“Caffeine is a defence chemical in plants and tastes bitter to many insects, including bees, so we were surprised to find it in the nectar,” said co-author Phil Stevenson of the University of Greenwich in Britain.

“However, it occurs at a dose that’s too low for the bees to taste but high enough to affect bee behaviour,” he said.

“This work helps us to understand the basic mechanisms of how caffeine affects our brains. What we see in bees could explain why people prefer to drink coffee when studying.”

Source:
http://www.skynews.com.au/eco/article.aspx?id=852505