Plants
- 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.
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- Plants
In dry times, these trees invest in ants
The insects provide adequate defense by ganging up on leaf-eating caterpillars and biting their undersides until the herbivores fall off the tree.
- Plants
Single-sex flowers release his, hers fragrances
Growing on the same tree, male blooms smell different from female blooms in certain tropical plant species.
- Earth
Trees mark the spot of buried gold
Tiny bits of the precious metal in eucalyptus leaves indicate treasure lurks belowground.
