Plants

Genetics

When flowers died out in Arctic, so did mammoths

Genetic analysis finds vegetation change in the Arctic around same time as megafauna extinction.

Ecosystems

Amazon doesn’t actually go green in dry seasons

An optical illusion in satellite data made forests appear to grow faster.

Plants

Sexually deceived flies not hopelessly dumb

Pollinators tricked into mating with a plant become harder to fool a second time.

Plants

Plants’ ATP collector found

Scientists identified two genes that write the code for the molecules, or receptors, that pull ATP into plant cells.

Plants

Bladderwort opens wide

Under a microscope, the tiny trap of a carnivorous plant becomes an impressive gaping maw.

Agriculture

Sweet potato weevils have favorite colors

When it comes to eradicating the sweet potato weevil, the devil is in the colorful details.

Climate

Mangroves move up Florida’s coast

Satellite images reveal that the tropical trees are expanding north up Florida’s Atlantic coast, taking advantage of rising winter temperatures.

Animals

Smoker’s breath saves caterpillars’ lives

Larvae of the tobacco hornworm caterpillar exhale nicotine, driving away predatory spiders.

Plants

Kleptoplast

A cellular part such as a light-harvesting chloroplast that an organism takes from algae it has eaten.

Animals

A year of rediscovered species

Thousands of species go extinct each year, but at least a few are found after many years of being lost.

Plants

Lone survivor of ancient flowers is gluttonous gene consumer

The rare Amborella shrub has engulfed whole genomes from other species.

Plants

How weeds hitchhike across the country

A drive down a muddy lane can be fun, but it can also pick up the seeds of weeds or invasive species and transport them far away.