Plants Use Caffeine to Lure Bees, Scientists Find

Summary:

A new study shows that the naturally caffeine-laced nectar of some plants encourages bees to return to those flowers. Plants want pollinators to stay "faithful" and to come back to the plant again, by producing sugary nectar and distinctive scents. The intriguing part is that plants are now using a psychoactive drug to influence the memorability of the plant. In Dr. Wright's experiments, the bees associated a reward with an odor, and as she refined her experiments, it became clearer that caffeine had a significant effect on memory.

Relevance to Class:

As we've studied in class, plants often go to great lengths to attract pollinators (in this case, bees), including fragrances, bright colors, and of course, the nectar itself. This is so that the pollinators who drink nectar from a flower move from plant to plant, they also spread the pollen, the male haploid gametophytes. These then fertilize the egg, and the plant can reproduce.

Source:

URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/08/science/plants-use-caffeine-to-lure-bees-scientists-find.html
Author: James Gorman
Date of Publication: 7 March 2013