Taxonomy & Evolution

Cells, Genes & Molecules

The Journey of a Tropical Plant Tribe from Africa to the Americas

Scientists used DNA to track how a group of tropical plants travelled across continents over millions of years and found that they were able to spread because they attracted a variety of animals to eat their fruits and excrete their seeds.

Renata Cantoro

12 Jan 2024

Ecosystems

Tackling Plant Biodiversity Conservation in the Anthropocene

A global team of plant experts harnessed new tools to map worldwide hotspots of botanical evolution over millions of years, revealing overlooked regions crucial for protecting nature’s phylogenetic diversity against extinction.

Michela Osnato

10 Jan 2024

News in Brief

Scientists Find Major Gaps in Open Access to Plant Biodiversity Data

Scientists propose open-access reforms to democratise biodiversity knowledge and mobilise hidden troves of undiscovered plant diversity before it’s too late.

Alun Salt

29 Sep 2023

News in Brief

World’s Largest Flowers at Risk of Extinction, Scientists Warn

The iconic giant Rafflesia flowers are disappearing at an alarming rate, according to new research published in Plants, People, Planet.

Alun Salt

25 Sep 2023

News in Brief

Phylogenetics Reveals the Importance of Biodiversity to Food Plants in Mexico

Tracing the phylogenetic patterns in native edible plants of Mexico shows how indigenous cultures have sustainably utilized regional botanical diversity for millennia.

a-i-assistant

18 Sep 2023

Taxonomy & Evolution

Angiosperms and Insects: A Dynamic Partnership Across Millions of Years 

Unveiling the secrets of pollination through time: How the age-old alliance between flowers and pollinators continues to shape the natural world.

Victor H. D. Silva

11 Sep 2023

Taxonomy & Evolution

Can unexpected changes happen in the process of plant domestication?

This fascinating investigation takes us on a journey through the evolutionary history of the squash plants to understand how domestication has modified the characteristics of these plants and their relationships with their pollinators.

ingrid-n-gomes

15 Aug 2023

Taxonomy & Evolution

Unexpected Discovery of Endangered Aquatic Plant in Japan

A pond in Ishikawa Prefecture has suddenly produced nearly ten thousand globally endangered carnivorous plants, challenging prior beliefs that the species was extinct in the wild in Japan.

Alun Salt

15 Jun 2023

Taxonomy & Evolution

The Roots of Western European Cork Trees Can Be Found in East Asia

Research explores how these trees braved climatic shifts, morphological changes, and geographical hurdles to shape modern-day Western Eurasian oak communities.

Alun Salt

14 Jun 2023

Taxonomy & Evolution

How does a plant give up on love?

Over the past 100,000 years some populations of Daphne kiusiana have been moving from finding partners to self-pollinating.

Alun Salt

02 Jun 2023