Proteaceae spread by continental drift and transoceanic dispersal
Using DNA sequence data, botanists have shown that the large southern hemisphere plant family Proteaceae lived on the super-continent Gondwanaland almost 120 million years ago. As Gondwanaland broke up, it was originally thought that these plants merely moved with the newly formed con...Lost forest yields several new species
...y also yield a number of new plant species; survey botanists were unable to identify some 10 percent of the collected samples, which will be sent to specialists in the near future. Given the findings with the vertebrates, it is likely that some of the plants will represent new species as well, said Ben Kirunda...UBC researchers reveal dwarf aquatic plants' hidden ancestry
...nal Nature. Due to their narrow, pointed leaves, botanists had long viewed Hydatellaceae as monocots, a large and diverse group of flowering plants that includes the grasses, gingers and palms. By analyzing the plants at the molecular level, Grahams team has now determined that these moss-size plants are ins...500,000 years of climate history stored year by year
... to such rough treatment. Under the microscope the botanists then assess how much pollen of which species is present in the layer in question. At interesting points we take every centimetre of material from the drill cores; in this way we achieve a chronological resolution of a few years. The pollen permits ...Iowa State University botanists identify new species of North American bamboo
AMES, Iowa -- Two Iowa State University botanists and their colleague at the University of North Car...d Weakley recently completed the intricate process botanists are obliged to follow to officially name and describe a newfound species. Following rules laid out i...World's largest flower evolved from family of much tinier blooms
...mily of plants whose blossoms are nearly all tiny, botanists write this week in the journal Science. Their gene...g neatly into any plant family," Davis says. "Many botanists had refused to even speculate on where this botanical outlier might fit into the tree of life." Raf...Conservation International & Disney discover new species in the 'Realm of the Yeti'
... new species discovered by the team of biologists, botanists and other technical experts include: A wingless grasshopper (Kingdonella) that can withstand extremely low temperatures and communicates by 'gnashing' its teeth. The male in this group rides on the back of the female for quite a long time, often d...Do plant species really exist? Why, yes, scientists say
...ecies are indeed 'real.' The problem has been that botanists have been way over-attracted to the plant species that readily hybridize and where the hybrids perpetuate themselves asexually. While it's true that dandelions and blackberries pose problems, these horror stories only make up 1 percent of the whole."...Pleasing plant shapes explained by new computer model
... process." Smith and Prusinkiewicz worked with the botanists in Switzerland to create a three-dimensional simul...enhance biological experiments by providing a tool botanists can use to complement and interpret their traditional laboratory experiments. It also promises to le...Washington University receives $29.5 million to sequence corn genome
...ers around the world." The maize genome will allow botanists to more precisely track the intermingling of genes...reated to combine advantageous traits. Farmers and botanists currently do this by crossbreeding, sowing the resulting plants, looking for the appearance of those...Ants, not evil spirits, create devil's gardens in the Amazon rainforest, study finds
...c secretions that kill competing plants--a process botanists call allelopathy. Others argue that devil's garden ants are responsible for controlling vegetation, either by extensive pruning or poisoning. "The idea is that by killing other plants, the insects create a space for young D. hirsuta saplings to grow,...Reforestation of burnt earth: Use truffles
...oost in those areas suitable for truffles. The two botanists have pointed out the lack of research in this field of deteriorated land areas of the Mediterranean, investigations that could be of great use. They also emphasise the value of the use mycorrhizzae in reforestation, given that it favours growth of tr...Team of international scientists departs today to discover the unknown in China's Himalayan region
... Discovery Networks will join renowned biologists, botanists and other technical experts from Conservation International's (CI) Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) as they search for new plant and animal species not yet known to science. "There is still so much that we don't know about our planet and especially in ...USGS Science at Ecological Society of America
...itself so successfully in its new environment that botanists consider it an invasive species one that may be decreasing the quality of wildlife habitat and altering the function of wetlands. Volunteers around the world are collecting data on seed production, height, and environment to determine how environmen...Dwarf mistletoe reveals its sexual secrets
...warf mistletoe is even getting traditionally staid botanists hot and bothered. New research shows that the dwarf mistletoe, a member of the same Viscaceae family as the better-known Christmas varieties, is truly worthy of being hung with pride. The stubby variety might be a clumpy green parasite of conifers,...Northwestern and Chicago Botanic Garden join forces to train botanists
..., so, it seems, is the plant scientist. Not enough botanists or plant conservationists are being trained to add... the future. This requires qualified and committed botanists and plant conservationists. "In light of the colossal environmental changes taking place across the ...New method to measure ancient land elevation developed by Field Museum scientist
...0 meters). The historical leaves were collected by botanists in the 1930s and stored within herbarium collections of the Field Museum and the University of California, Berkeley. The research was conducted with financial support from the National Science Foundation. This new method of estimatin...