Endangered Plants News

March 2, 2025

Top Headlines

Discovery of a Common 'Weapon' Used by Disease-Causing Fungi Could Help Engineer More Resilient Food Crops

Feb. 27, 2025 — The discovery of a powerful 'weapon' used by many disease-causing fungi to infect and destroy major food crop staples, such as rice and corn, could offer new strategies to bolster global food ...

Genetic Switch Could Help Control Leaf Growth in Poor Soils

Feb. 27, 2025 — A new study has identified a genetic circuit in plants that controls individual leaf growth and allows the plants to adapt to their environment. The findings could help the development of more drought-resistant ...

New Manzanita Species Discovered, Already at Risk

Feb. 25, 2025 — A new species of manzanita -- a native California shrub famous for its twisted branches and wildfire resilience -- has been discovered on the central coast, but its survival is already threatened by urban development that could destroy much of its ...

Unexpected Discoveries in Study of Giraffe Gut Flora

Feb. 24, 2025 — The gut bacteria of giraffes are not primarily determined by what they eat, but by the species they belong to. This is shown in a new study in which researchers have analyzed the link between diet and gut flora in three giraffe species in Kenya. The ...

Latest Headlines

updated 11:15pm EST

Parasitic Orchids Are Healthier

Feb. 19, 2025 — Why have some orchids stopped photosynthesis and become parasites feeding on fungi? Researchers found that in at least one species the transition may be driven by the opportunity -- more than by the ...

From Plants to People: How Amino Acid, Vitamin Balance Links Plant Immunity to Epilepsy

Feb. 18, 2025 — A groundbreaking study has revealed a surprising biochemical connection between plant immune responses and human neurological health. Researchers ...

Biomedicine Shows the Way to Future Food Crops

Feb. 18, 2025 — Researchers have introduced genetic material into plants via their roots, opening a potential pathway for rapid crop ...

Global Warming and Mass Extinctions: What We Can Learn from Plants from the Last Ice Age

Feb. 12, 2025 — Global warming is producing a rapid loss of plant species -- according to estimates, roughly 600 plant species have died out since 1750 -- twice the ...

Large Differences in Water-Seeking Ability Found in U.S. Corn Varieties

Feb. 6, 2025 — A study has identified key genetic pathways in corn that help its roots branch out to find water in soil; the varieties adapted to temperate regions like the U.S. corn belt showed large differences ...

Plant Power: A New Method to Model How Plants Move Water Globally

Feb. 5, 2025 — Earth systems models are an important tool for studying complex processes occurring around the planet, such as those in and between the atmosphere and biosphere, and they help researchers and ...

The Cost of Preventing Extinction of Australia's Priority Species

Feb. 3, 2025 — A new study has estimated it would cost $15.6 billion per year for 30 years to prevent extinction for 99 of Australia's priority species. The research highlights the urgent need for increased funding ...

High-Yield Rice Breed Emits Up to 70% Less Methane

Feb. 3, 2025 — Rice cultivation is responsible for around 12% of global methane emissions, and these emissions are expected to increase with global warming and as the human population continues to grow. Now, ...

Burn Grasslands to Maintain Them: What Is Good for Biodiversity?

Jan. 31, 2025 — As grasslands get abandoned, controlled burning is discussed as a labor-saving method of keeping forests at bay. A research team found that this method results in higher biodiversity and a higher ...

A Window Into the Future of Amazonia

Jan. 29, 2025 — New research from a team of tropical biologists forecasts some of the changes that may occur in the Amazon rainforest as temperatures rise due to climate ...

Research Contrasts Drought Sensitivity of Eurasian and North American Grasslands

Jan. 29, 2025 — Grasslands in Asia and North America differ in their responses to drought, according to a new article. The findings show that differences in the dominant grasses and lower species diversity in the ...

Botanic Gardens Must Team Up to Save Wild Plants from Extinction

Jan. 27, 2025 — The world's botanic gardens must pull together to protect global plant biodiversity in the face of the extinction crisis, amid restrictions on wild-collecting, say ...

New Insights Into the Immune Response of Plants

Jan. 27, 2025 — Biologists have identified important components and mechanisms of the molecular machinery that transmits information about a pathogen encounter within the plant ...

How Camellias Evolved With the Formation of the Japanese Archipelago?

Jan. 26, 2025 — Japan Sea element plants are generally thought to have evolved from closely related species on the Pacific side. Camellia japonica and Camellia rusticana were also believed to follow this pattern. ...

Plant's Name-Giving Feature Found to Be New Offspring-Ensuring Method

Jan. 23, 2025 — 130 years after a fungus-eating plant received its name, a researcher has uncovered the purpose of the structure that inspired its name -- revealing a novel mechanism by which plants ensure ...

Plants More Likely to Be 'Eavesdroppers' Than Altruists When Tapping Into Underground Networks

Jan. 22, 2025 — A new study has used a modelling approach to show that it is unlikely that plants would evolve to warn other plants of impending attack. Instead of using their communication networks to transmit ...

Researcher Studies the Power of Native Plants to Combat Road Salt Pollution

Jan. 17, 2025 — Salt pollution from road deicing salts threatens freshwater ecosystems and urban green infrastructure. New research on salt-tolerant plants like cattails highlights their potential role in mitigating ...

Microbial Cell Factories May Help Get to the Root of Understudied Plant Molecules

Jan. 16, 2025 — A new tool could make it easier to study scarce plant molecules. Researchers have developed so-called microbial cell factories -- using E. coli and yeast -- to produce a special class of plant ...

How Climate Change May Alter Hydrology of Grassland Ecosystems

Jan. 16, 2025 — New research reveals that drought and increased temperatures in a CO2-rich climate can dramatically alter how grasslands use and move water. The study provides the first experimental demonstration of ...

How Cryogenic Microscopy Could Help Strengthen Food Security

Jan. 15, 2025 — A research team reports on a novel observation of a plant protection mechanism in response to salt stress. The study opens new avenues of research to strengthen food ...

Could This Fundamental Discovery Revolutionize Fertilizer Use in Farming?

Jan. 15, 2025 — Researchers have discovered a biological mechanism that makes plant roots more welcoming to beneficial soil ...

What Makes Some Plant Species 'Ripe' for Domestication

Jan. 14, 2025 — Researchers have proposed that some wild plant species possess certain attributes which make them more suitable for human cultivation than ...

Study on Hemp May Lead to More Sustainable Farming Methods

Jan. 14, 2025 — A new study of hemp microbes may lead to more sustainable farming methods, using nature to boost the growth of the plant which has become increasingly popular for its versatile uses: CBD-rich ...

Study Shows How Plant Roots Access Deeper Soils in Search of Water

Jan. 10, 2025 — Scientists have discovered how plants adapt their root systems in drought conditions to grow steeper into the soil to access deeper water ...

Rapid Return of Water from Ground to Atmosphere Through Plants

Jan. 9, 2025 — A new study provides the first comprehensive global estimates of the amount of water stored in Earth's plants and the amount of time it takes for that water to flow through them. The information ...

Two-in-One Root Armor Protects Plants from Environmental Stressors and Fights Climate Change

Jan. 9, 2025 — Scientists have created the first single cell genomic atlas of mature plants' outer armor layer, called the periderm, and its carbon-capturing phellem cells. The findings will be useful in ...

Plant Cells Gain Immune Capabilities When It's Time to Fight Disease

Jan. 8, 2025 — Scientists have created a new atlas of plant cells during immune response, in turn discovering a new rare cell state, called Primary IMmunE Responder (PRIMER), that acts as an immune response hub to ...

Tiny Plants Reveal Big Potential for Boosting Crop Efficiency

Jan. 6, 2025 — Scientists have long sought ways to help plants turn more carbon dioxide (CO2) into biomass, which could boost crop yields and even combat climate change. Recent research suggests that a group of ...

Hornwort Genomes Provide Clues on How Plants Conquered the Land

Jan. 6, 2025 — Over 450 million years ago, plants began the epic transition from water to dry land. Among the first pioneers were the ancestors of humble hornworts, a group of small, unassuming plants that have ...

Study Suggests RNA Present on Surfaces of Leaves May Shape Microbial Communities

Jan. 3, 2025 — Biologists have shown that the surfaces of plant leaves are coated with a diverse array of RNA molecules. The finding suggests that the RNA present on the leaf surface may play a role in shaping the ...