Searching for signs of picky, competitive mating in a whole other kingdom

Searching for signs of picky, competitive mating in a whole other kingdom

The term “bar fight” does not actually appear in Saila Varis’ recent paper in the journal Trees or in her Ph.D. dissertation on the Scots pine. But she’s a good sport about discussing whether her research suggests that tree pollen grains have their own versions of nose-punching brawls over female favor. After all, pollen grains from genetically different trees of the same species appear to be able to sabotage each other’s race to a mate, says Varis, of the Finnish Forest Research Institute near Helsinki. Though it is not exactly like a bar fight, she says, there are hints of male-versus-male competition

Study of flower petals shows evolution at the cellular level

Study of flower petals shows evolution at the cellular level

A new study of flower petals shows evolution in action, and contradicts more that 60 years of scientific thought.

The findings are reported by a scientist from UC Santa Barbara and a research team from Harvard University in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B this week. Columbine flowers, known as Aquilegia, evolved several lengths of petal spurs that match the tongue lengths of their pollinators, including bees, hummingbirds, and hawkmoths. The petal spurs are shaped like a tubular pocket and contain nectar at the tip. The spurs grow from 1 to 16 centimeters in length, depending on the species.