How bees get a buzz from eating sugar... just like we do!

IT is not just people who are cheered up by a sweet treat – bees appear to get a buzz out of sugar and may have emotions too.

Scientists at Queen Mary University of London trained the insects to expect blue flowers, but not green ones, to contain food.

They then gave some bees a droplet of sugared water before setting them loose near a bluegreen flower. Those who had the sugar sped towards the flowers, landing on them more quickly than the other insects.

The researchers believed rather than being more excited, the sugar-fed bees were happier.

Much like upbeat people see the best in unclear situations, the bees saw the blue-green flowers as an opportunity rather than something to be feared.

In another test, bees given sugar ahead of a simulated spider attack recovered more quickly.

Writing in journal Science, Professor Lars Chittka said bees exhibit ‘surprising levels of intelligence and emotion-like states’ and added: ‘We should respect their needs when testing them in experiments.’

Co-author Luigi Baciadonna said: ‘Sweet food can improve negative moods in human adults and reduce crying of newborns in response to negative events.

‘Our results suggest that similar cognitive responses are occurring in bees.’