Several non-human animal species are said to engage in apparent

recreational drug use Recreational drug use indicates the use of one or more psychoactive drugs to induce an altered state of consciousness either for pleasure or for some other casual purpose or pastime by modifying the perceptions and emotions of the user. When a ...

, that is, the intentional ingestion of

psychoactive A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, psychoactive agent or psychotropic drug is a chemical substance, that changes functions of the nervous system, and results in alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition or behavior. Th ...

substances in their environment for pleasure, though claims of such behavior in the wild are often controversial. This is distinct from

zoopharmacognosy Zoopharmacognosy is a behaviour in which non-human animals self-medicate by selecting and ingesting or topically applying plants, soils, insects, and psychoactive drugs to prevent or reduce the harmful effects of pathogens, toxins, and even o ...

, in which animals ingest or topically apply non-food substances for their health benefits, as a form of

self-medication Self-medication is a human behavior in which an individual uses a substance or any exogenous influence to self-administer treatment for physical or psychological conditions: for example headaches or fatigue. The substances most widely used in sel ...

Alcohol

Vervet monkeys

Vervet drinking energy drink at Tshokwane

Some

vervet monkey The vervet monkey (''Chlorocebus pygerythrus''), or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa. The term "vervet" is also used to refer to all the members of the genus '' Chlorocebus''. The five distinc ...

s in the Caribbean, particularly teenaged individuals, exhibit a preference for

alcoholic Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomina ...

beverages over non-alcoholic ones, a taste which likely developed due to the availability of fermented

sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus '' Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stal ...

juice from local plantations. On

Saint Kitts Saint Kitts, officially the Saint Christopher Island, is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean. Saint Kitts and the neighbouring island of Nevis con ...

, these monkeys often raid bars and tourist beaches for alcoholic drinks, and become visibly inebriated. The proportions of the monkey population that do not drink, that drink in moderation, and that drink to excess mirror those proportions in humans.

Myths

Elephants

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

n legends, recorded as early as the 1830s by naturalist

Adulphe Delegorgue Louis Adulphe Delegorgue (13 November 1814 – 30 May 1850) was a French explorer, hunter and naturalist who travelled in southern Africa in the 1840s and wrote about the region. Delegorgue was born to a farmer and mayor of Courcelles, Adulphe ...

, describe

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae ...

s seeking out the

fermented Fermentation is a metabolic process that produces chemical changes in organic substrates through the action of enzymes. In biochemistry, it is narrowly defined as the extraction of energy from carbohydrates in the absence of oxygen. In food p ...

fruit of the marula tree, and showing signs of

intoxication Intoxication — or poisoning, especially by an alcoholic or narcotic substance — may refer to: * Substance intoxication: ** Alcohol intoxication ** LSD intoxication ** Toxidrome ** Tobacco intoxication ** Cannabis intoxication ** Cocaine in ...

, including increased

aggression Aggression is overt or covert, often harmful, social interaction with the intention of inflicting damage or other harm upon another individual; although it can be channeled into creative and practical outlets for some. It may occur either reacti ...

, after doing so. This behavior was controversially depicted in the 1974 documentary ''

Animals Are Beautiful People ''Animals Are Beautiful People'' (also called ''Beautiful People'') is a 1974 South African nature documentary written, produced, directed, filmed and edited by Jamie Uys, about the wildlife in Southern Africa, presented with comedy film, comed ...

'': the crew of the film reportedly staged the scene, either by soaking the fruit in alcohol before allowing animals to eat it, or by simply injecting the animals with a veterinary

anesthetic An anesthetic (American English) or anaesthetic (British English; see spelling differences) is a drug used to induce anesthesia ⁠— ⁠in other words, to result in a temporary loss of sensation or awareness. They may be divided into tw ...

to elicit symptoms of intoxication. Studies have concluded that this is a

myth Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrati ...

. One of the studies instead attributed their aggression to the value of the trees as a food source. Yet it may be possible that another intoxicant is at play – elephants are also known to eat the

bark Bark may refer to: * Bark (botany), an outer layer of a woody plant such as a tree or stick * Bark (sound), a vocalization of some animals (which is commonly the dog) Places * Bark, Germany * Bark, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland Arts, en ...

of the tree, which often contains toxic

beetle Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

pupae A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...

Other intoxicants

Bees

A 2010 study from the

University of Haifa The University of Haifa ( he, אוניברסיטת חיפה Arabic: جامعة حيفا) is a university located on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel. Founded in 1963, the University of Haifa received full academic accreditation in 1972, becoming I ...

reported that bees prefer nectar containing nicotine and

caffeine Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine class. It is mainly used recreationally as a cognitive enhancer, increasing alertness and attentional performance. Caffeine acts by blocking binding of adenosine t ...

over that without, and suggested that this preference may be part of the

reward system The reward system (the mesocorticolimbic circuit) is a group of neural structures responsible for incentive salience (i.e., "wanting"; desire or craving for a reward and motivation), associative learning (primarily positive reinforcement and cl ...

driving the mutualistic feeding behavior.

Cats

About 70% of domestic cats are attracted to, and affected by, the plant ''

Nepeta cataria ''Nepeta cataria'', commonly known as catnip, catswort, catwort, and catmint, is a species of the genus '' Nepeta'' in the family Lamiaceae, native to southern and eastern Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, and parts of China. It is widel ...

'', also known as catnip. The plant also affects some wild cats, including tigers, though the percentage of these cats affected is unknown. Cats sniff, lick, and sometimes chew the plant, and may rub against it, with their cheeks and whole body, by rolling over it. If cats consume concentrated extract of the plant, they quickly show signs of overexcitement, including violent twitching, profuse salivation, and sexual arousal. The reaction is caused by volatile terpenoids called

nepetalactone Nepetalactone is a name for multiple iridoid analog stereoisomers. Nepetalactones are produced by ''Nepeta cataria'' (catnip) and many other plants belonging to the genus '' Nepeta'', in which they protect these plants from herbivorous insects by f ...

s present in the plant. Although these are mildly toxic and repel insects from the plant, their concentration is too low to poison cats.

Dolphins

In 1995, the

marine biologist Marine biology is the scientific study of the biology of marine life, organisms in the sea. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies sp ...

Lisa Steiner reported that a group of

rough-toothed dolphin The rough-toothed dolphin (''Steno bredanensis'') is a species of dolphin that can be found in deep warm and tropical waters around the world. The species was first described by Georges Cuvier in 1823. The genus name ''Steno'', of which this spe ...

s near the

Azores ) , motto= ( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem=( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

were pushing around inflated

puffer fish Tetraodontidae is a family of primarily marine and estuarine fish of the order Tetraodontiformes. The family includes many familiar species variously called pufferfish, puffers, balloonfish, blowfish, blowies, bubblefish, globefish, swellfish ...

and behaving lethargically. Puffer fish defensively excrete

tetrodotoxin Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is a potent neurotoxin. Its name derives from Tetraodontiformes, an order that includes pufferfish, porcupinefish, ocean sunfish, and triggerfish; several of these species carry the toxin. Although tetrodotoxin was discove ...

, which might have been having an intoxicating effect on the dolphins. This behavior was also reported in the 2014 BBC documentary ''

Dolphins - Spy in the Pod ''Dolphins - Spy in the Pod'' is a British factual television series that was first broadcast on BBC One on 2 January 2014. The two-part series was narrated by David Tennant and produced by John Downer Productions. The series was also broadcas ...

''. However, tetrodotoxin is not known to be

, and only produces

numbness Hypoesthesia or numbness is a common side effect of various medical conditions that manifests as a reduced sense of touch or sensation, or a partial loss of sensitivity to sensory stimuli. In everyday speech this is generally referred to as nu ...

tingling Paresthesia is an abnormal sensation of the skin (tingling, pricking, chilling, burning, numbness) with no apparent physical cause. Paresthesia may be transient or chronic, and may have any of dozens of possible underlying causes. Paresthesias ar ...

, and

lightheadedness Lightheadedness is a common and typically unpleasant sensation of dizziness or a feeling that one may faint. The sensation of lightheadedness can be short-lived, prolonged, or, rarely, recurring. In addition to dizziness, the individual may feel ...

in small doses, while in larger doses it is extremely toxic. For these reasons, marine biologist Christie Wilcox has expressed doubt that dolphins dose themselves with the toxin intentionally.

Lemurs

Black lemurs have been documented gently biting toxic

millipede Millipedes are a group of arthropods that are characterised by having two pairs of jointed legs on most body segments; they are known scientifically as the class Diplopoda, the name derived from this feature. Each double-legged segment is a re ...

s, which causes them to

salivate Saliva (commonly referred to as spit) is an extracellular fluid produced and secreted by salivary glands in the mouth. In humans, saliva is around 99% water, plus electrolytes, mucus, white blood cells, epithelial cells (from which DNA ...

, and then rubbing their saliva and the millipede secretions on their fur. The millipede toxins, including

cyanide Cyanide is a naturally occurring, rapidly acting, toxic chemical that can exist in many different forms. In chemistry, a cyanide () is a chemical compound that contains a functional group. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of ...

and

benzoquinone Benzoquinone (C6H4O2) is a quinone with a single benzene ring. There are 2 (out of 3 hypothetical) benzoquinones: * 1,4-Benzoquinone, most commonly, right image (also ''para''-benzoquinone, ''p''-benzoquinone, ''para''-quinone, or just quinone) * ...

, are thought to act primarily as an

insect repellent An insect repellent (also commonly called "bug spray") is a substance applied to skin, clothing, or other surfaces to discourage insects (and arthropods in general) from landing or climbing on that surface. Insect repellents help prevent and co ...

, protecting the lemurs from diseases such as

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or deat ...

, thus making this behavior a form of

. However, the toxins also appear to have a narcotic effect on the lemurs, causing them to enter an apparently blissful state, which may serve as a reward for the behavior.

Wallabies

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

wallabies A wallaby () is a small or middle-sized macropod native to Australia and New Guinea, with introduced populations in New Zealand, Hawaii, the United Kingdom and other countries. They belong to the same taxonomic family as kangaroos and so ...

have been reported repeatedly entering commercial

poppy A poppy is a flowering plant in the subfamily Papaveroideae of the family Papaveraceae. Poppies are herbaceous plants, often grown for their colourful flowers. One species of poppy, ''Papaver somniferum'', is the source of the narcotic drug o ...

fields, consuming the plants, and showing signs of intoxication.

References

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Atlas Obscura ''Atlas Obscura'' is an American-based online magazine and travel company. It was founded in 2009 by author Joshua Foer and documentary filmmaker/author Dylan Thuras. It catalogs unusual and obscure travel destinations via user-generated conten ...

, date=January 29, 2016 , access-date=March 22, 2023 , archive-date=March 24, 2023 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324134127/https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/lemurs-get-high-on-their-millipede-supply , url-status=live {{cite news , title=Stoned wallabies make crop circles , url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8118257.stm , access-date=March 22, 2023 , publisher=

BBC World News BBC World News is an international English-language pay television network, operated under the ''BBC Global News Limited'' division of the BBC, which is a public corporation of the UK government's Department for Digital, Culture, Media an ...

, date=June 25, 2009 , archive-date=March 22, 2023 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322201403/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8118257.stm , url-status=live {{cite web , last1=Cooke , first1=Lucy , title=Do moose (and other animals) eat fermented fruit to get drunk? , url=https://bigthink.com/big-think-books/do-moose-and-other-animals-eat-fermented-fruit-to-get-drunk/ , website=

Big Think Big Think is a multimedia web portal founded in 2007 by Victoria Brown and Peter Hopkins. The website is a collection of interviews, presentations, and round table discussions with experts from a wide range of fields. Victoria Brown is the acti ...

, access-date=April 4, 2023 , date=April 19, 2018 , archive-date=April 4, 2023 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404145035/https://bigthink.com/big-think-books/do-moose-and-other-animals-eat-fermented-fruit-to-get-drunk/ , url-status=live {{Cite episode , title= Peculiar Potions: Narcotic insecticide , url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00zd3w2 , access-date= March 22, 2023 , series=

Weird Nature ''Weird Nature'' is a 2002 British documentary television series produced by John Downer Productions for the BBC and Discovery Channel. The series features strange behavior in nature—specifically, the animal world. The series now airs on the Sc ...

, first= John , last= Downer , author-link= John Downer (filmmaker) , network=

BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

, publisher=

John Downer Productions John Downer (born 1952) is a British film producer of nature documentaries for television and cinema. He is best known for his contributions to the nature documentary series '' BBC Wildlife Specials''. Education and career John Downer was bor ...

, date= April 25, 2002 , series-no= 1 , number= 4 , minutes= , archive-date= March 22, 2023 , archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230322190420/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00zd3w2 , url-status= live {{Cite episode , title= Peculiar Potions: Happy hour , url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00zd535 , access-date= March 22, 2023 , series=

, first= John , last= Downer , author-link= John Downer (filmmaker) , network=

BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

, publisher=

, date= April 25, 2002 , series-no= 1 , number= 4 , minutes= , archive-date= March 22, 2023 , archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230322200404/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00zd535 , url-status= live {{Cite episode , title= Episode 2 , url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01pfwhk , series=

, first= John , last= Downer , author-link= John Downer (filmmaker) , network=

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's Flagship (broadcasting), flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News ...

, publisher=

, date= January 7, 2014 , number= 2 , minutes= , access-date= March 23, 2023 , archive-date= November 18, 2021 , archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20211118012128/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01pfwhk , url-status= live {{cite news , last1=Goldman , first1=Jason G. , title=Do animals like drugs and alcohol? , url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20140528-do-animals-take-drugs , access-date=March 22, 2023 , work=

BBC Future BBC Online, formerly known as BBCi, is the BBC's online service. It is a large network of websites including such high-profile sites as BBC News and Sport, the on-demand video and radio services branded BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, the children ...

, date=May 27, 2014 , archive-date=March 24, 2023 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324144130/https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20140528-do-animals-take-drugs , url-status=live {{cite journal , last1=Morris , first1=Steve , last2=Humphreys , first2=David , last3=Reynolds , first3=Dan , title=Myth, Marula, and Elephant: An Assessment of Voluntary Ethanol Intoxication of the African Elephant (Loxodonta africana) Following Feeding on the Fruit of the Marula Tree (Sclerocarya birrea) , journal=

Physiological and Biochemical Zoology ''Physiological and Biochemical Zoology'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the University of Chicago Press on behalf of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. Traditionally, it has covered research on the biochemistr ...

, date=April 2006 , volume=79 , issue=2 , pages=363–369 , doi=10.1086/499983 , pmid=16555195 , s2cid=36629801 , url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/499983 , access-date=March 22, 2023 , archive-date=March 22, 2023 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322193032/https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/499983 , url-status=live {{cite book, isbn=978-1-59477-069-2, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6_nd2DZ-h-UC&pg=PA62, title=Intoxication: The Universal Drive for Mind-Altering Substances , vauthors = Siegel RK , authorlink=Ronald K. Siegel , publisher=

, year=2005 {{cite journal , last1=Singaravelan , first1=Natarajan , last2=Nee'man , first2=Gidi , last3=Inbar , first3=Moshe , last4=Izhaki , first4=Ido , title=Feeding Responses of Free-flying Honeybees to Secondary Compounds Mimicking Floral Nectars , journal=

Journal of Chemical Ecology The ''Journal of Chemical Ecology'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Springer Science+Business Media covering all aspects of chemical ecology. The journal was established in 1975 and is the official journal of the Interna ...

, date=2005 , volume=31 , issue=12 , pages=2791–2804 , doi=10.1007/s10886-005-8394-z , pmid=16365705 , bibcode=2005JCEco..31.2791S , s2cid=13382917 , url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10886-005-8394-z , access-date=March 23, 2023 , archive-date=April 4, 2023 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404074637/https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10886-005-8394-z , url-status=live {{cite web , last1=Theys , first1=Michael , title=Do African animals get drunk from marula fruit? Or is it a myth? , url=https://africafreak.com/marula-fruit , website=AfricaFreak.com , date=October 22, 2021 , access-date=April 4, 2023 , archive-date=April 4, 2023 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404143551/https://africafreak.com/marula-fruit , url-status=live {{cite news , last1=Umer , first1=Natasha , title=9 Animals That Get Drunk Or High , url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/natashaumer/9-animals-that-could-teach-us-something-about-drugs-and-alco , access-date=March 22, 2023 , work=

BuzzFeed BuzzFeed, Inc. is an American Internet media, news and entertainment company with a focus on digital media. Based in New York City, BuzzFeed was founded in 2006 by Jonah Peretti and John S. Johnson III to focus on tracking viral content. ...

, date=December 16, 2014 , archive-date=April 4, 2023 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404074637/https://www.buzzfeed.com/natashaumer/9-animals-that-could-teach-us-something-about-drugs-and-alco , url-status=live Ethology Psychoactive drugs

Alcohol

Vervet monkeys

Myths

Elephants

Other intoxicants

Bees

Cats

Dolphins

Lemurs

Wallabies

See also

Further reading

References