Friday, November 10, 2017

Surprising Good News About Coffee...!

Want to do more to help Mother Nature do her thing...like attracting bees? Furnish more coffee!

Actually, I'm referring to the coffee plant and not the finished product. I found an interesting article over on Listverse that talks about how bees are attracted to the caffeine in the coffee plant flower. I mean, who knew?

Coffee Contains Caffeine To Attract Bees



Every other coffee list on the Internet will tell you that coffee was discovered by goat herders, whose goats got a little jolly after munching on coffee berries. But why does coffee contain caffeine to begin with? Well, it’s toxic to slugs and other pests, but it turns out it also has an effect on pollinators such as bees. In fact, scientists think they get—wait for it—a buzz from the caffeine in the flowers of plants.

Scientists found that consuming caffeine helped bees to improve their long-term memories. The caffeine acts on the brain chemistry of bees in a way that makes the flowers more memorable, so the bees are more likely to return to plants of the same type. Though bees and humans are very different, some experts suggest the capacity to be affected by caffeine could be as old as the common ancestors we share, as it impacts our neurological activity on a very fundamental level.

See? Coffee drinkers and bees have more in common that you thought! How cool is that?

Coffee inside again this morning. Still a bit cool out on the patio.

8 comments:

Rob said...

Every now & then I stop to think about coffee. We use the pit from the bean, it's roasted, ground then boiled or seeped to make the drink.
Who figured out to use the pit of the bean?
Now I find out that bees like it too!

It's dark & in the low 40s right now in Georgia, coffee inside for sure... I did have an English muffin with the coffee!

Momlady said...

Enjoying my coffee at this moment. Since it's in the 30's here in North GA the cat didn't stay out long. It's supposed to get into the 60's. What a difference the sun makes! Making pot roast for our pot luck lunch at the gallery. Sure does smell good.

linda m said...

That is so interesting. So I am not the only creature who gets a "buzz" from coffee. Very cold and windy here this morning. Temp is 13 degrees with a 4 degree windchill. Way too cold of my old bones. Have a great weekend.

HermitJim said...

Hey Rob...
Trying to figure out who was the first to try something will drive you crazy. Still, I do it all the time! First the hunt for who...then the hunt for why.
Thanks for stopping by today!


Hey Momlady...
58 degrees here on the patio. Warm compared to where you are. I do love the smell of good cooking first thing in the morning.
Thanks for coming over today!


Hey Linda...
That's just way too cold for me. I do like my coffee buzz, just like the bee!
Thanks for the visit today!

JO said...

Well who knew, I had cut back on my coffee and now I know why my memory has gotten worse. better start making a bigger pot again.

I really late this morning so the temp has gone up to 60 as if now but the house stays pretty cool. May be time to bring in the electric heater. But seeing what Momlady and Linda have I am not complaining at all.

Dizzy-Dick said...

I didn't know it attracted bees, but it sure does attract me. I just had my quintuple strength cup of coffee and could stand another one. I usually only have one of those in mid-morning and one in mid-afternoon.

HermitJim said...

Hey Jo...
I need all the help with my memory I can get. If coffee can help, great! Although I am going to drink it regardless!
Thanks, sweetie, for dropping by this morning!


Hey Dizzy...
When it comes to coffee, I say the more the merrier. Might even turn out to be good for me, ya know?
Thanks for coming over this morning!

Sixbears said...

I love cool facts about coffee. Had not heard that one before. Thanks, I've got more useless info to share with my friends. :)