Despite stories of hornets getting drunk and beetles consuming beer, alcohol consumption in the non-human animal kingdom is not particularly widespread, intentional, or for physiological benefit. It was thought that there was nothing to do. Ecologists are now challenging this theory, arguing that they are far more common and strategic than scientists believed.
The international team of ecologists based their argument on the fact that ethanol is a naturally occurring compound in nearly every ecosystem on Earth and is frequently consumed by animals that feed on fruit and nectar.
“We’re moving away from the anthropocentric view that ethanol is just something people use,” said lead author Kimberly Hockings, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Exeter. “It’s much more abundant in nature than we previously thought, and most animals that eat sweet fruits will be exposed to some level of ethanol.”
Of course, the origins of alcohol date back to ancient human history. From beer made from rice 9,000 years ago to evidence of beer consumed in China 5,000 years ago. However, despite anecdotal reports of non-human animals appearing intoxicated after ingesting ripe fruit or sweet substances, little research has been conducted on its actual prevalence in the wider biological community.
The researchers cited reported cases of animal intoxication in their study. “Elephants (African elephants), baboons (Papio ursinus) and other wild animals are apparently ‘drunk’ on the fruit of Botswana’s marula (Sclerocaria bilrea),” and a moose (found stuck in a tree in Sweden). Alces alces) reportedly drank fermented apples, but in none of these cases was ethanol measured in the fruit, and no evidence of ethanol (or its metabolites) has been detected in the animal. I had never done it before. For example, wild green monkeys (Chlorocebus aethiopus), introduced to the Caribbean in the 1600s, drink alcoholic fruit cocktails from tourists on St. Kitts. ”
Ethanol, an important alcoholic compound produced when yeast ferments sugars found in fruits, grains, and vegetables, has been readily available for about 100 million years. Around this time, the evolution of flowering plants that produced sweet nectar and fruits allowed ethanol to be produced naturally and consumed by animals living on certain diets.
Researchers found that naturally fermented foods contain, on average, only about 1 to 2% alcohol by volume (ABV) of ethanol, and that ethanol in naturally fermented foods, such as the fruit of extremely ripe Astrocaryum Standleyanum palms in Panama, It adds that alcohol levels are low in some ripe fruits. Alcohol content reached 10.3%. However, this is not indicative of all tropical regions, and the alcohol content of Singaporean fruit has been found to be between 0.006% and 0.61%.
To put this into context, a regular can of beer, hard seltzer, or hard cider has an alcohol content of about 5%.
Although animals are genetically adept at processing and breaking down ethanol before fermentation by yeast occurs, the researchers found that certain species seek out fruits and nectar with higher concentrations of sugar. We believe that there is a possibility that there is an evolutionary switch that has changed.
“Cognitively, the idea is that ethanol triggers endorphin and dopamine systems, leading to feelings of relaxation and potentially having social benefits,” said behavioral ecologist and first author. says Anna Bowland of the University of Exeter. . “To test that, we really need to know whether ethanol causes a physiological response in nature.”
Is it possible that species are more affected by ethanol consumption than previously thought, or that overripe fermented fruit is exposed to other types of attractants (e.g., strong odors that make it easier for animals to find it, or higher concentrations of ethanol? Further research is needed to observe whether the fruit of the fruit is easier to find). Their sugar content means they are a favorable source of energy. After all, the non-animal kingdom is a finely tuned energy acquisition cost machine, and more sugar means more fuel for individuals.
“From an ecological point of view, it is not advantageous to be inebriated when climbing trees at night or being surrounded by predators. That is the secret to not passing on genes,” says the molecular ecologist. says Matthew Carrigan, the journal’s senior author. University of Central Florida. “This is the opposite of humans who want to be inebriated but don’t need as many calories. From a non-human perspective, animals need calories but not intoxication.”
However, how animals use alcohol for biological benefit may still be unknown. Drosophila melanogaster is thought to deliberately lay eggs in products high in ethanol to ward off parasites. The larvae of these flies (Drosophila melanogaster) also increase their ethanol intake when targeted by parasitic wasps.
Previous research has investigated alcohol consumption and behavior in the animal kingdom, including whether hummingbirds get drunk when they eat, the beneficial social changes in buzzing flies, and how zebrafish get bolder when they’re “drunk.” It’s here.
Henry Didier Camara
Anecdotes of “drunk” animals suggest we may not fully understand what lies behind species seeking potentially boozy food, so researchers calls for further research into the use of ethanol in the United States. The research team will now investigate how primates’ ethanol intake and the enzymes involved in breaking down dietary alcohol are related to their social interactions and behavior.
“A broad eco-evolutionary view of alcohol use suggests that ethanol is neither rare nor simply avoidable,” the researchers concluded. “Although ethanol can be toxic, it also has protective effects against ‘competing’ organisms, and metabolic adaptation to ethanol may expand the resources available to provide calories to animals. , leading to a reconsideration of the ecological role and evolutionary impact of ethanol in nature.”
The study was published in the journal Trends in Ecology & Evolution.
Source: University of Exeter
