Discover self-seeding plants in Brazil

A new plant capable of sowing its own seeds was found in Bahia, northeastern Brazil, one of the world's most ecologically diverse areas.

The small tree only a few centimeters tall with a white star-shaped flower grows in the backyard of a Russian amateur botanist named Alex Popovkin and who discovered it was one of his assistants. Jose Carlos Mendes Santos.

Mr. Santos has contacted biologists in many countries to support the study of new plants.

The species was named Spigelia genuflexa due to its unusual adaptation. After fruiting, the fruit branches bend down and place the follicles containing seeds on the ground, and sometimes bury them under soft moss. This method ensures that the seeds germinate and grow into plants near their 'mother' plants in the next season.

Dr Lena Struwe, a biologist at Rutgers University in New Jersey, said the Spigelia genuflexa may have developed seeding for a variety of reasons.

'About this plant, most likely because it has a short period of existence (only a few months) and lives in appropriate environmental areas, the mother tree is considered the most successful if it is planted close to you, more is to fly them away into inappropriate environments , 'Ms. Struwe told the BBC.

One more interesting thing is that because the tree exists only in one season, the mother tree will not compete with its seedlings, which may be a problem for longer-lived plants. Ms. Struwe said, a few other tree species evolved this way to survive on the cliffs, by placing seeds in safe openings, and also to avoid the animals eating the seeds.

According to Ms. Struwe, the discovery shows that there are still many species that have not been named and recognized in nature. It also shows the pressing need to protect and preserve the remaining areas of the Atlantic forest, one of the world's largest biodiversity areas, in the hands of deforers.

Popovkin's findings are published in the latest issue of PhytoKeys .