👋 Hello Everybody! New Series starting today to highlight some of the most exciting discoveries from Botany and Biodiversity in the past 5 years! I hope you enjoy!!
Discovery Spotlight: The Palm That Flowers Underground 🌴 🚇
Scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew have described a palm species from Borneo, Pinanga subterranea, whose flowers and fruit develop almost entirely beneath the soil surface!
This makes it the first known palm to exhibit this astonishing adaptation. Unlike typical palms, this rare species completes both flowering and fruiting underground (a phenomenon called geoflory), a strategy previously recorded in just a handful of plant groups.
➡️ The discovery was made possible through collaboration with local Indigenous knowledge holders, highlighting the critical value of traditional ecological expertise in revealing hidden biodiversity.
Why is it important? It fundamentally expands our understanding of plant survival strategies and the evolutionary diversity in the palm family.
It also underscores the need to protect tropical rainforests and to respect Indigenous botanical knowledge. There is so much more to learn about how life thrives in the world’s most complex habitats.
Deep Gratitude for the Traditional Knowledge holders who have safeguarded and nurtured our relationship with nature across generations, and for the dedicated Researchers whose tireless curiosity and commitment continue to expand our understanding of the natural world..these collective efforts hold the promise of shaping a future that is more resilient, sustainable, and filled with hope for all.
Reference:
Randi A, Petoe P, Kuhnhäuser BG, Chai PPK, Bellot S, Baker WJ. (2023). Pinanga subterranea, a New Arecoid Palm from Borneo that Flowers Underground. PALMS 67(2): 57–63.