Articles tagged with Flowers
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The genus Iris, comprising over 300 species, has a poor fossil record, but researchers created a phylogeny to study evolutionary divergence. They found the last common ancestor of irises probably had purple flowers with a crest and spot on falls, pollinated by insects for nectar.
In a new study, researchers have identified the molecular mechanism behind two key proteins that influence plant form and timing of developmental transitions. The study reveals an antagonistic relationship between Terminal Flower 1 (TLF1) and Flowering Locus T (FT) proteins, which promote branch formation and flowering, respectively.
Researchers discovered that yellow pond-lily (Nuphar lutea) exhibits a cyclic flower structure, with sepals forming two whorls and petals in a single whorl. This finding provides valuable information about the evolutionary history of angiosperms and their first flowers.
Two genes, ELF3 and GI, control a plant's internal clock, regulating the timing of flowering in response to daylight. The study provides insights into how plants anticipate environmental changes and breed better-adapted varieties.
Researchers at Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology found that soap bubbles can deliver pollen grains to targeted flowers, facilitating effective pollination. The technique outperformed other methods in terms of precision and quality, but requires further improvement for large-scale application.
A new study reveals that bumblebees bite leaves of flowerless plants to accelerate flowering, causing blooms to occur two weeks to a month earlier. This behavior suggests that bumblebees can manipulate plant flowering through deliberate damage, providing pollination systems with more plasticity and resilience to climate change.
Research suggests that plant species maintain both light and dark pollen due to distinct survival advantages. Lighter morphs have higher seed production ability, while darker morphs produce higher-quality pollen with increased anthocyanidin production, which helps relieve heat stress.
Bilaterally symmetrical flowers can restore their 'correct' orientation by moving individual flower stems or even the stalk that supports a cluster of flowers. This ability helps them attract pollinators and produce seeds. In contrast, radially symmetrical flowers lack this ability and rarely recover after an injury.
Researchers created pollen-based paper with responsive properties to humidity, allowing fine-tuning of responsiveness through variations in thickness and surface roughness. The material absorbs moisture, curls, and resumes its shape, demonstrating self-actuation and environmental sensitivity.
Researchers propose a new method for measuring large areas by synchronizing chaotic oscillators, enabling accurate and robust measurements without requiring individual sensor interrogation. The approach allows for spatial averaging and harvesting information from nodes through gentle stimulation with an exciter signal.
Researchers found that prescribed fires are critical for successful reproduction in prairie plants, causing synchronized flowering which increases mating opportunities and seed production. The study observed the sex lives of individual plants for 21 years and found nearly doubled annual seed production after a prescribed burn.
A new study using bumblebees found that the sweetest nectar is not always the best; too much sugar slows them down. The researchers discovered that bees prefer nectars with lower sugar concentrations, which are easier to drink and vomit back up.
New research reveals that Australia's oldest flowering plants are 126 million years old and resemble modern magnolias, buttercups, and laurels. Climate change may have prevented their expansion into Australasia due to cold temperatures.
Researchers found that flower shapes have evolved in adaptation to distinct pollinators, but not uniformly across the entire flower. The showy sterile organs of flowers adapted more quickly to different pollinators than the reproductive organs.
Researchers found that tortoises cannot distinguish the lower petal surfaces of daisies with closed flowers, which are camouflaged to avoid herbivores. This novel defense mechanism does not negatively impact pollination interactions.
Evolutionary ecologists use quantum dots to label and track pollen grains, showing that long- and short-tubed flowers place and receive pollen on different parts of a fly's tongue. This reveals a barrier to gene flow, capturing plants in the act of speciation and providing insights into the mechanisms behind this process.
Scientists have discovered a new non-blooming orchid species, Gastrodia amamiana, on Amami-Oshima and Tokunoshima islands. The unique plant has hard buds instead of opening its flowers, suggesting it may have evolved to conserve resources in a forest environment.
Scientists uncover that saffron crocus is a hybrid of wild Crocus cartwrightianus cytotypes, resolving centuries-long debate. Genome sequencing and comparative analysis reveal fusion of two individual genomes, confirming the plant's autotriploid nature.
Male hummingbirds have evolved stiff, hard-tipped bills for fighting, prioritizing fencing over efficient feeding. These unique bills compromise nectar sipping ability.
A new study in eLife describes a 50-million-year-old fossil flower species that defies widely accepted theories of plant evolution. The discovery of Nanjinganthus dendrostyla sheds light on the origins of angiosperms, potentially indicating an earlier emergence than previously thought.
Researchers created high-quality 3D digital representations of plant structures to answer questions about taxonomic classification, wind pollination, and seed production. The technique has the potential to revolutionize botany education and inform macroevolutionary studies, highlighting the beauty of grass flowers.
A study explores how biomechanical factors shape plant organs, revealing a power-law distribution for growth strain within leaves. Researchers replicated leaf geometries in a hydrogel, offering insights into bioinspired structures in soft materials.
A 99-million-year-old flower fossil discovered in Burmese amber sheds light on the sudden appearance of angiosperms. The find indicates that Core Eudicots, a group including apple and cherry trees, flourished on Earth around 100 million years ago.
Researchers at IST Austria identified two genes that determine magenta and yellow flower colors in snapdragons, which are separated by a hybrid zone. The study found that selection favored new variants of these genes, making the flowers more attractive to bees, while also creating barriers to gene exchange.
Researchers at Tohoku University have identified the retrotransposon insertion in a floral homeotic gene responsible for greenish orchid mutations. This discovery paves the way for genetic modification of orchids to produce more flowers.
A study by the University of Sussex reveals that climate change is altering the timing of events in the interdependent relationship between a rare orchid species and the Buffish Mining-bee. The research shows that rising temperatures are causing an increase in years where the sequence of events needed for successful pollination does no...
A recent study found that vertebrates are essential pollinators for many plants, including crops like dragon fruit and durian. The study revealed that the exclusion of bat pollinators resulted in an 83% drop in fruit production, highlighting the importance of these animals in plant reproduction.
A study of the scarlet monkeyflower found mixed results for demographic compensation as a means of avoiding population declines in response to changing climate conditions. Despite increases in flowering rates, many southern populations declined due to reduced survival and growth rates.
A new species of orchid has been found to be a different identity from previously thought Lecanorchis nigricans var. patipetala. The closed-flower variety has smaller flowers and distinct petal features that set it apart from the open-flower variety.
Researchers have uncovered the earliest known fossil evidence of insects from the order Lepidoptera, providing important insights into their evolutionary history. The fossils, mostly wing scales, suggest that lepidopterans likely depended first on gymnosperms before shifting to angiosperms as a primary food source.
Lobachevsky University scientists have identified five new forms of the Cypripedium guttatum orchid with distinct flower coloring. The forms exhibit high intraspecific polymorphism, with the most pronounced distinction between externemaculatum and semialbum.
The Aspidistra elatior flower attracts insects by pretending to be a mushroom, with fungus gnats being the primary pollinators in its native habitat. This discovery clarifies that like most plants, A. elatior is mainly pollinated by flying insects.
Researchers found that flower petals with nanoscale ridges on their surface produce a 'blue halo' effect, which helps bees locate flowers. The irregularities in these nanostructures appear to be harnessed by evolution to aid floral communication.
A study found that ungroomed areas on bees' bodies match the position of flower pollen-sacs and stigmas, facilitating pollen transfer. The researchers also discovered that these 'safe sites' are contacted by flowers' reproductive organs, allowing for efficient pollination.
Researchers found that nectar attracts herbivores like sawflies, which eat petals and nectaries, away from critical flower parts. This 'decoy' strategy allows flowers to protect their reproductive tissues, enhancing pollination success.
A new study reconstructs the evolution of flowers and sheds light on what the earliest flowers might have looked like. The ancestral flower was bisexual, with both female and male parts, and multiple whorls of petal-like organs. This new model offers a plausible scenario to explain the spectacular diversity of floral forms.
Researchers discovered that bumblebees use two distinct behaviors to collect pollen from flowers: scrabbling when pollen is abundant and sonication when it's scarce. By analyzing chemical and mechanical cues, the team found that bees switch between these motor regimes depending on their environment.
Researchers found that flowering crops produce the greatest volume of sweetest nectar surrounding flowers to attract ants. This strategy allows plants to balance defense and reproduction while avoiding conflicts with pollinators.
Researchers Victoria Hudspith and Claire Belcher found that different types of plants burned at varying temperatures and that certain flower shapes made them more likely to be destroyed by fire. This discovery affects the interpretation of charred flowers as a source of information about ancient flowering plants.
Researchers identified two genes that contribute to extreme branching in tomatoes, but found a way to use these genes to create improved plants with increased fruit yields. The study's findings could have implications for other crops in the same genus as tomatoes.
Scientists at Queen Mary University of London found that nicotine-laced nectar enhances bumblebees' learning of flower colors and creates addiction-like behavior. The study suggests plants may manipulate pollinator behavior using psychoactive substances like nicotine.
Researchers found that a pollinator's size significantly influences how much pollen is deposited, with bees fitting tightly into flowers to vibrate and unlock pollen. This discovery helps understand natural populations of nightshade plants and their pollinators.
Scientists discovered that buttercup petals contain a one-cell thick epidermis with a yellow pigment, which acts as an optical film reflecting light. The starch layer also scatters light, enriching the flower's bright yellow color. This complex anatomy produces a glossy sheen and advantages pollination and seed maturation.
Flowers use physical tricks such as creating colour and manipulating gravity to attract pollinators. They may also alter their electrical fields to influence visitation rates.
Scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory have identified a network of genes controlling how many flowers and branches are produced in plants, with implications for crop yields and plant diversity. The discovery could lead to new ways to manipulate flowering patterns and improve food production.
Researchers found that bees consider multiple factors, such as strong odour and visual appearance, when deciding on flowers to visit. Bees also form memories of previous experiences and receive feedback from their nest to inform their foraging decisions.
Researchers investigated how hawkmoths integrate visual and tactile cues to track flowers, revealing a simple additive model for signal combination. The study suggests that the sense of touch plays a greater role in tracking behavior, but both senses are used to follow the flower.
A new species of plant, Gastrodia kuroshimensis, has been discovered in Japan, exhibiting unique characteristics of non-photosynthesis and cleistogamy. This discovery provides an opportunity to investigate the ecological significance and evolutionary history of complete cleistogamy.
A NUS study found that tropical butterflies are more likely to be flower specialists, preferring native plants and having shorter proboscis. Urbanization threatens these specialized species by reducing native plant availability, necessitating conservation intervention measures.
Researchers found that cells growing at different rates and directions average out over time, creating uniform flowers on plants. The study identifies a gene, FtsH4, that affects reactive oxygen species accumulation, which stiffens cell walls and regulates growth.
A study by the University of Edinburgh reveals that plant flower arrangements influence bee flight patterns to maximize pollination and reproduction. Researchers found that flowers on one side of the stem lead to vertical flights, while circular arrangements discourage upward flights.
A London bee tracking project has begun, releasing 500 tagged bees to study their behavior and interactions with flowers in urban gardens. The project aims to understand the bees' preferred patches and favourite flowers, rewarding participants with prizes for identifying the most flowers visited by individual bees.
Researchers will study pollinators at various sites to identify the insects responsible for spreading mummy berry disease and investigate how variations in insect visitation affect resistance levels among blueberry varieties. The study aims to reduce reliance on fungicides and help growers cope with the disease.
Researchers discovered that hawk moths can smell floral volatiles using olfactory neurons on their proboscis. This allows them to select flowers with sufficient nectar, leading to successful pollination and seed production. The study highlights the importance of scent in flower-pollinator interactions.
Researchers found that Manduca sexta moths prefer flowers with nectar that matches the length of their proboscis, resulting in optimal energy gain. The moths use scent to guide themselves to these ideal flowers, which is supported by an innate preference.
Researchers at the University of Stirling discovered that wild bumblebees are born with the ability to vibrate flowers to extract pollen. Over time and with practice, bees refine their vibrations, saving energy and maximizing rewards from each flower.
Bumblebee foraging behavior altered by low levels of pesticides, changing floral preferences and hindering learning skills.
Researchers found that flowers with imperfect iridescence are easier for bees to spot than those with perfect iridescence, which can confuse bees' color recognition. This subtle signal allows flowers to communicate with bees without interfering with their ability to distinguish between colors.
Lena Struwe, a Rutgers University botanist, has identified two flowers encased in ancient amber as belonging to a newly discovered species within the Strychnos genus. The discovery highlights the existence of many undiscovered plant species hidden away in natural history collections worldwide.
A study found that male hummingbirds drive female birds away from yellow-flowered plants, while females prefer red flowers due to male aggression. This competition may lead to the evolution of multiple flower forms to suit different pollinators.