Related topics: genes · plants · bees

Bumblebees speed up flowering by piercing plants

When pollen is in short supply, bumblebees damage plant leaves in a way that accelerates flower production, as an ETH research team headed up by Consuelo De Moraes and Mark Mescher has demonstrated.

Wildflowers combat climate change with diversity

In 1859, when Charles Darwin first articulated the theory of evolution, he speculated that a process of natural selection led species to adapt to their environments over time. He believed traits that helped an organism survive ...

Cut flowers last longer with silver nanotechnology

Once cut and dunked in a vase of water, flowers are susceptible to bacterial growth that shortens the length of time one has to enjoy the blooms. A few silver nanoparticles sprinkled into the water, might be the answer to ...

Loss of wild flowers across Britain matches pollinator decline

The first ever Britain-wide assessment of the value of wild flowers as food for pollinators, led by the University of Bristol, shows that decreasing resources mirror the decline of pollinating insects, providing new evidence ...

Nectar: A sweet reward from plants to attract pollinators

Evolution is based on diversity, and sexual reproduction is key to creating a diverse population that secures competitiveness in nature. Plants had to solve a problem: they needed to find ways to spread their genetic material. ...

Fungus uses zombie female beetles to infect males

A combined team of researchers from the University of Arkansas and Cornell University has found that a type of fungus kills female goldenrod soldier beetles in a unique way—by causing them to attract males, which assists ...

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