A new study has found that it isn’t just humans who like to catch a buzz from alcohol.
Scientists discovered that monkeys, lemurs and birds also feast on fruit and nectar containing ethanol – the main ingredient in alcohol.
The fermented fruits typically have up to two percent alcohol by volume (ABV), but the researchers explained that some like over-ripe palm fruit in Panama had 10.2 percent ABV.
They observed primates were among the largest groups that intentionally ingested ethanol to catch a buzz, just like humans.
Chimpanzees were documented using leaf sponges to collect sap with noticeable ethanol concentrations and continued to consume it.
First author Anna Bowland of the University of Exeter said: ‘On the cognitive side, ideas have been put forward that ethanol can trigger the endorphin and dopamine system, which leads to feelings of relaxation that could have benefits in terms of sociality.’
Ethanol is present in nearly every ecosystem and is found in most fruit and nectar which could explain why there are accounts of wildlife behaving ‘drunk’
Senior author Kimberley Hockings said: ‘We’re moving away from this anthropocentric view that ethanol is just something that humans use.
‘It’s much more abundant in the natural world than we previously thought, and most animals that eat sugary fruits are going to be exposed to some level of ethanol.’
Researchers at the University of Exeter in the UK focused on animal’s eating habits who were captured from the wild and found that many showed no aversion to ethanol levels.
In fact, when they looked at randomized food preference experiments, the team found that animals were more likely to choose the food option containing higher levels of ethanol.
A new study found a few documented cases that showed primates were intentionally ingesting ethanol in a similar way that humans would. They are using leaves to catch fermented nectar and ignoring high concentrations of ethanol
Captive aye-ayes – also known as a long-fingered lemur – showed a preference for food with higher ethanol concentrations ranging from two to five percent ABV.
The number of documented cases of wild animals consuming fermented fruit and nectar is rare, but the new study published in the journal Trends in Ecology & Evolution found that this could just be due to a lack of research.
There have been claims of animals behaving oddly after ingesting food that contained ethanol, including reports of mid-air accidents with cedar waxwings that ingested fermented berries.
However, the accounts were often discounted as unnatural, accidental or unsubstantiated, leading scientists to believe ethanol was restricted to human ancestors.
These animals have adapted over time to metabolize ethanol effectively, the researchers noted, but added that it still isn’t clear whether they intentionally consume the ethanol.
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk