Flora & Fauna Web

A fossilised pine cone with germinated seeds encased in Baltic amber was discovered. Researchers of Oregon State University explained that precocious germination is very rare in gymnosperms like pine, with only one naturally occuring example described from 1965. However, germination of seeds inside the fruits of angiosperms or flowering plants is not uncommon especially in the absence of seed dormancy. This discovery in amber is the first record of fossil seed viviparity in plants. The research also found that this vegetatitve viviparity may have connections to winter frost, suggesting that it may have happened much earlier than the discovery.

For the first time in two decades, researchers in British Columbia identified a new carnivorous plant; Triantha occidentalis! This carnivorous plant grows in nutrient-poor, boggy but brightly lit areas on the west coast of North America, from California to Alaska. The delicate flower stalk of Triantha occidentalis might seem like a nice perch for insects. However, the sticky hairs on the flower stalk means certain death as the plant ensnares passing prey and absorb its nutrients with the help of digestive enzymes it secretes. This plant is unique in that it traps insects near its insect-pollinated flowers, showing a careful balance of carnivory and pollination. Only smaller insects like midges are captured while larger and stronger pollinators like bees and butterflies can escape from its sticky trap. The discovery of the plant in this well-studied eco-system shows that there are more surprises yet to be discovered in nature.

On a remote Australian island, researchers have found the first evidence of division of labour among plants similar to the social organisation of ant or bee colonies. Groups of wild Platycerium bifurcatum (staghorn ferns) on trees displayed differences in structure and reproductive capacity depending on its position in the tree; whether it is higher or lower in the canopy. The ferns at the top have erect antler-like fronds that gathered and channelled water to waxy basal fronds that let water drip down to ferns below. Ferns positioned higher in the tree also have more spore-bearing fronds. Ferns lower in the canopy tended to have antler-like fronds that hung downwards, absorbent basal fronds that efficiently trapped water and were usually sterile. This level of cooperation and division of labour was once thought to be restricted to insects and animals, but now appear to exist among plants!