What gives bees their sweet tooth?
10th May 2018, ScienceDaily
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Raquel Texeira de Sousa
Scientists have discovered bees linger on a flower, emptying it of nectar, because they have sugar-sensing taste neurons which work together to prolong the pleasure of the sweetness.
Newcastle University researchers report that the bees' taste neurons found on their proboscis -- their mouthparts -- fire intense signals for up to 10 seconds -- much longer than the taste neurons found in other insects.