Human Senses 1. Smell and Taste (5 of 21)

Human Senses

In nature poisonous plants often taste bitter.
So that's why children are reluctant to eat their greens.
And sour tastes aren't very popular either.
A sour taste can mean something has gone off or is dangerously unripe.
So few children like sour tasting citrus fruits.
But we adore the tastes that give us what we need.
We like salt because we need it to replace salt loss through sweat.
And above all we love sweet foods.
Because sugar means energy.
But if you think children have a sweet tooth, their craving for sugar is nothing compared to some animals like the humming bird.
At the South Eastern Arizona Bird Observatory they feed humming birds with sugar water.

Just because humming birds don't have teeth doesn't stop them from having a sugar craving.
They're among the most sugar hungry creatures on earth.
So just how much do hummers love their sugar?
Will they go for anything that looks vaguely like their feeding station?
Humming birds are passionate about sugar water, because they get most of the energy they need to survive from sugars.
Humming bird consume half their weight in sugar every day.
And even though we humans like sweet things we can't match that.
It would be like us eating a thousand bars of chocolate.
At the other extreme there are animals with absolutely no interest in sweet things.
Cats just eat meat.
They get almost all of their energy from the fat and protein.
So their tongues don't even register sweet tastes.
So like all animals the tastes we crave are determined by what we need.