An unusual hornet can drink alcohol without getting drunk. It eats fruits that ferment into alcohol, which is usually intoxicating. Other animals can’t handle more than 4% ethanol, but these hornets can even survive on 80% ethanol solutions. Scientists believe that a gene in the hornets helps break down alcohol easily. This ability gives them an advantage when feeding on highly fermented foods. The hornets’ relationship with brewer’s yeast might also play a role in their tolerance for alcohol. This discovery shows that animals, like humans, can also enjoy alcohol.
Test Your Understanding
Start Quiz
Vocabulary List:
6 words · tap to reveal
OFF
AccentSpeed
Intoxicating/ɪnˈtɑːk.sɪ.keɪ.tɪŋ/adjective
Capable of causing impairment of physical and mental capabilities.
Ethanol/ˈiː.θə.nɒl/noun
A volatile flammable colorless liquid that is the active ingredient in alcoholic beverages.
Survive/sərˈvaɪv/verb
To continue to live or exist especially in spite of danger or hardship.
Fermented/fərˈmɛn.tɪd/adjective
Having undergone fermentation a metabolic process that produces chemical changes in organic substrates often resulting in alcohol.
Tolerance/ˈtɒl.ər.əns/noun
The ability to endure continued exposure to something especially a drug or substance.
Advantage/ədˈvæn.tɪdʒ/noun
A condition or circumstance that puts one in a favorable or superior position.
How much do you know?
What is the name of the unusual hornet mentioned in the text?
What type of foods do these hornets consume that lead to their alcohol tolerance?
What percentage of ethanol solutions can the hornets survive on?
What is believed to contribute to the hornets' tolerance for alcohol?
Which animal cannot handle more than 4% ethanol?
What advantage do these hornets have when consuming highly fermented foods?
The oriental hornet can drink alcohol without getting drunk.
The hornets' relationship with brewer's yeast does not affect their tolerance for alcohol.
Animals, like humans, cannot enjoy alcohol.
The gene in the hornets helps break down alcohol easily.
The ability of the hornets to handle high ethanol concentrations gives them an advantage.
Fermentation of fruits into alcohol is what makes these hornets unique.
The unusual hornet can even survive on ethanol solutions.
The hornets' tolerance for alcohol may be attributed to a gene that helps break down alcohol .
The hornets' special relationship with brewer's yeast might play a role in their tolerance for alcohol. This yeast might also provide them with additional for alcohol.
Animals, like humans, can also enjoy .
Other animals cannot handle more than 4% .
The discovery mentioned in the text implies that animals can possess a capacity for .
This question is required
