Where bees get their buzz: Caffeinated nectar helps the insect’s memory

Where bees get their buzz

After a long day buzzing between flowers, even the most industrious worker bee could use a little help remembering which ones she wants to return to the next day. Some plants have a trick to ensure they end up at the top of the list: caffeinated nectar.

More health and science news

Likely health-plan rates in Calif. under new law lower than expected

Sandhya Somashekhar

The published prices partly rebut warnings by critics that many people will experience ‘rate shock.’

Two infants among tornado dead

Debbi Wilgoren

Ten fatally injured children include a pair of sisters, and 4-month-old whose mother also was killed.

Green groups criticize Environmental Defense Fund

Lenny Bernstein

Large pro-environment group is scolded for joining forces with oil companies on “fracking.”

A team of researchers bombarded honeybees with floral smells paired with sugary rewards, some of which contained the same levels of caffeine found in the nectar of coffee and citrus flowers. Three times as many bees remembered the odors associated with caffeine after 24 hours as they did the scents associated with sugar alone, the team reported in the journal Science. When the researchers applied the stimulant directly to honeybee brains, it had a positive effect on the neurons associated with the formation of long-term memories.

Now, they want to see if bees go out of their way to feed on caffeinated nectar, perhaps even ignoring predators to do so — behavior that, if observed, might shed light on the neurological processes behind addiction.