EARTH.COM - Evolution is taking an unexpected turn on the volcanic islands of the western Galápagos. Wild tomato plants are producing a toxic blend of chemicals that hasn’t existed in their species for millions of years. Somehow, these plants have started making molecules more like eggplants than the modern tomato. This bizarre twist in evolution...
NEW ATLAS - The evolutionary ladder is meant to be climbed one rung at a time with an organism shedding some traits and gaining others on the way up. However, in a very surprising twist, some tomatoes on the Galapagos islands are inching back down the ladder. When they found the backwards-reaching plants, researchers from...
IFL SCIENCE - We typically think of evolution as progressing in one direction, with a species getting “better” and “better” as it goes. But evolution is far more complex than that, as has recently been illustrated by an unusual organism: Galápagos tomatoes. These wild-growing fruits are shedding millions of years of evolution in order to...
NEWSWEEK - Wild tomatoes on the Galápagos Islands are rewinding millions of years of evolution, according to a new study. Scientists at the University of California, Riverside found that these tomatoes—descended from South American ancestors likely brought to the Pacific archipelago by birds—are producing a toxic molecular cocktail not seen in millions of years. Biologists...
EARTH.COM - Nanoparticles – microscopic specks released by cars, factories, forest fires, and volcanoes – float through every ecosystem on Earth. Scientists are also designing these particles to precisely deliver fertilizers to crop roots, target pests with pesticides, or serve as tiny sensors that detect plant stress. But new research, led by the University of...
THE COOL DOWN - Urban development in California is threatening a new manzanita species — a plant species already considered highly vulnerable since its discovery in the area. What's happening? The Dana Reserve project, a housing development in Nipomo, is a 288-acre community with 1,370 residential units on land where a new manzanita species was...
EARTH.COM - For centuries, farmers have struggled to keep their crops safe. Droughts, pests, and poor soil are common challenges. But among the most silent and destructive enemies are parasitic weeds. These plants do not grow on their own. Instead, they cling to healthy crops and steal vital nutrients. In regions already battling food insecurity...
The UC Riverside departments of Evolution, Ecology & Organismal Biology, Botany and Plant Sciences, and Environmental Sciences hosted the inaugural Southern California Conference on Ecological Change on February 14. The inaugural event was organized in response to the effects of warming climate, larger and more frequent fires, urbanization and land development, and invasive species on...
VENTURA COUNTY STAR - California scientists discovered a new species of manzanita, believed to grow only in places along the state’s south-central coast. And unlike its sister shrubs, its bark is gray instead of red, its discoverers said. As far as researchers know, the new species of native California shrub grows only near the Santa...
THE COOL DOWN - Scientists at the University of California-Riverside recently discovered a chemical that plants produce that could help prevent infections in medical patients. Science Daily reported on the findings, explaining that biofilm is a slimy bacterial layer that clings to surfaces. In a medical setting, this film can make it harder to treat...
