Several new species of plants were discovered last year from underground forests and mountaintops. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, recorded 74 plants and 15 fungi new to Biology.
New Plant Species Discovered
The top 10 species that scientists have identified as being new to science in 2023 serve as both a sobering warning about the perils of climate change and biodiversity loss and a reminder of the wonder and beauty of the natural world.
According to senior research leader Dr. Martin Cheek, the first stage in establishing safeguards and looking into possible applications for humans is giving a species a scientific name.
"The sheer sense of wonder when you realise that you've found a species that is totally unknown to the rest of the world's scientists and, in fact, everyone else on the planet, in many cases, is what makes life worth living," Cheek told BBC. "It's a huge boost."
Among the top 10 species were three new species of Antarctic fungi. There are no flowering plants in the area, but lichens thrive there.
Kew's fungi expert, Dr. Raquel Pino-Bodas, said the diversity observed in the area could help them discover new sources of medicines, food, and other active compounds to find nature-based solutions to our current problems.
Another addition to the list is a strange carnivorous plant from Mozambique. The Crepidorhopalon droseroides is from the Mint family. It lures insects and traps them using sticky hairs, which it may digest later for food. According to experts, it is unrelated to other carnivorous plants recorded.
"I put my money on it being proved as carnivorous scientifically in the next few years," Dr. Cheeks said. "And if that is verified, this will be a new occurrence of the evolution of carnivorous plants being recorded."
The team also discovered a new orchid from Madagascar. The pale translucent flowers reportedly survived due to the blue-beak bird called helmet vanga, which safeguards the habitat.
The other finds include fungi growing on food waste in South Korea, a violet-like flower from Thailand, and an indigo-bearing plant from South Africa.
It is believed that as many as 100,000 plants are still yet to be formally named. Scientists usually call about 2,500 new species of plants and 2,500 new species of fungi annually.
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Fungi Population
The number of fungi is usually higher, and this isn't surprising. Fungi have a sexual reproduction known as a mating-type system, which allows them to have thousands of sexes.
They can only mate with other individuals of their species due to variations in specific genes. It shows that certain fungi have up to 36,000 sexes, while some mushrooms have only two mating kinds!
An extremely promiscuous fungus with 23,000 sexes is fondly called "schizo" or Schizophyllum commune. Its unassuming appearance would make you not give it any thought. Many Western travel books label the shroom as "inedible," yet other cultures find its rigid, rubbery texture appealing.
You wouldn't anticipate a simple white wood rot to have tens of thousands of sexual varieties if you knew nothing about mycology. Because communes are forced to mate with genetically unique individuals, their populations are continually becoming more diverse in terms of sexual orientation.
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