Eli5: why do chilli plants turn red to attract animals to disperse seeds but also produce the spicy chemical to put them off?

Question

Eli5: why do chilli plants turn red to attract animals to disperse seeds but also produce the spicy chemical to put them off?

In: 6541

Answer 1

Birds aren’t affected by capsaicin.

Peppers are meant for birds, who will eat the seeds whole, not digest em harshly, and poop em out elsewhere

Peppers are NOT for mammals, who will chew, and fully digest the seeds, destroying the plant’s babies.

Sadly, peppers weren’t prepared for the reality: A lot of humans are masochists to an extent, and get off to the thrill of surviving pain.

Tldr: They’re red so that birds can find em easy. They’re spicey because it hurts mammals who would destroy the seeds