Editing Coffea (section)

== Ecology ==
The [[caffeine]] in coffee beans serves as a [[Toxin|toxic]] substance that protects against insects and other pests, a form of natural [[plant defense against herbivory]]. Caffeine simultaneously attracts [[pollinator]]s, specifically honeybees, by creating an olfactory memory that signals bees to return to the plant's flowers.<ref name=HamoGrov17>{{cite journal |last1=Hamon |first1=Perla |last2=Grover |first2=Corrinne E. |last3=Davis |first3=Aaron P. |last4=Rakotomalala |first4=Jean-Jacques |last5=Raharimalala |first5=Nathalie E. |last6=Albert |first6=Victor A. |last7=Sreenath |first7=Hosahalli L. |last8=Stoffelen |first8=Piet |last9=Mitchell |first9=Sharon E. |last10=Couturon |first10=Emmanuel |last11=Hamon |first11=Serge |last12=de Kochko |first12=Alexandre |last13=Crouzillat |first13=Dominique |last14=Rigoreau |first14=Michel |last15=Sumirat |first15=Ucu |last16=Akaffou |first16=Sélastique |last17=Guyot |first17=Romain |date=2017 |title=Genotyping-by-sequencing provides the first well-resolved phylogeny for coffee (''Coffea'') and insights into the evolution of caffeine content in its species: GBS coffee phylogeny and the evolution of caffeine content |journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution |volume=109 |pages=351–361 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2017.02.009 |pmid=28212875 |bibcode=2017MolPE.109..351H |name-list-style=amp}}</ref> Not all ''Coffea'' species contain caffeine, and the earliest species had little or no caffeine content. Caffeine has evolved independently in multiple lineages of ''Coffea'' in Africa, perhaps in response to high pest predation in the humid environments of West-Central Africa.<ref name="HamoGrov17" /> 

Caffeine has also evolved independently in the more distantly related genera ''[[Theobroma]]'' ([[cocoa bean|cacao]]) and ''[[Camellia]]'' ([[tea]]).<ref>{{cite journal |last=Denoeud |first=France |display-authors=et al. |title=The coffee genome provides insight into the convergent evolution of caffeine biosynthesis |journal=Science |date=5 September 2014 |volume=345 |issue=6201 |pages=1181–1184 |doi=10.1126/science.1255274|pmid=25190796 |bibcode=2014Sci...345.1181D |doi-access=free}}</ref> This suggests that caffeine production is an [[Adaptation|adaptive trait]] in coffee and plant evolution. The fruit and leaves also contain caffeine, and can be used to make [[coffee cherry tea]] and [[coffee-leaf tea]]. The fruit is also used in many brands of soft drink as well as pre-packaged teas.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://slimfast.com/product_cat/slimcafe-coffee-drinks/|title=SlimCafe is no longer available|first=Craig|last=Selby|date=31 May 2019|website=SlimFast}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.futureceuticals.com/coffeeberry-cascara|title=Coffeeberry Cascara – Soluble, Sustainable &#124; FutureCeuticals|website=www.futureceuticals.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2017/starbucks-cascara-latte/|title=Starbucks|website=stories.starbucks.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://dwellerscoffee.com/products/cascara|title=Brazilian Cascara|website=Dwellers Coffee|access-date=20 July 2019|archive-date=19 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210419220646/https://dwellerscoffee.com/products/cascara|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Several insect pests affect coffee production, including the coffee borer beetle (''[[Hypothenemus hampei]]'') and the coffee leafminer (''[[Leucoptera caffeina]]'').

Coffee is used as a food plant by the larvae of some [[Lepidoptera]] ([[butterfly]] and [[moth]]) species, ''[[Dalcera]] abrasa'', [[turnip moth]] and some members of the genus ''[[Endoclita]]'', including ''[[Endoclita damor|E. damor]]'' and ''[[Endoclita malabaricus|E. malabaricus]]''.