The consumption of alcoholthrough numerous fermented fruits, is a very common practice among many wild animals and could also bring them some benefits, since they are an important source of calories.
This has been verified by researchers from several universities, who have concluded that ethanol is naturally present in almost all ecosystems, so it is likely that most animals that feed on fruit and nectar consume it regularly; Today they have published the results of their work in the journal Trends in Ecology and Evolution of the Cell group.
Images and anecdotes of wild animals behaving “drunk” after eating fermented fruits are very common, but Researchers until now believed that ethanol consumption is rare and accidental, and now they have questioned that premise and have pointed out that such consumption may be habitual.
The lead author of the work, Kimberley Hockings, from the British University of Exeter, has corroborated that ethanol is not something that only humans use and consume. “It is much more abundant in the natural world than we thought, and most animals that eat sugary fruits are going to be exposed to some level of ethanol.”.
Ethanol became abundant about 100 million years ago, when flowering plants began producing sugary nectar and fruits that yeast could ferment, and today it is present naturally in almost all ecosystems, although concentrations are higher and its production takes place throughout the year in humid tropical environments and lower latitudes.
Animals already harbored genes capable of breaking down ethanol before yeast began producing it, but there is evidence that evolution honed this ability in mammals and birds that consume fruit and nectar, and specifically, primates and shrews have adapted to efficiently metabolize ethanol the research centers have reported in the note published by the magazine.
“From an ecological point of view, it is not advantageous to be drunk while climbing trees or surrounded by predators at night,” said researcher Matthew Carrigan, from the College of Central Florida, and specified that “it is the opposite of the humans, who want to get intoxicated but don’t really want the calories; “Animals want the calories but not the intoxication.”
Researchers maintain that ethanol consumption could provide several benefits to wild animals, since in addition to being a source of calories, the odorous compounds produced during fermentation could guide animals towards food sources and also have medicinal benefits.
Fruit flies intentionally lay their eggs in ethanol-containing substances because it protects their eggs from parasites, and fruit fly larvae increase their ethanol intake when parasitized by wasps.