The strange flower in the cave

Perhaps people never thought that flowers could exist in the dark environment of the cave, but that was a sight that scientists witnessed in China.

Pink flowers of Pilea cavernicola. (Photo: Livescience)

Alex Monro, botanist researcher of the Museum of Natural History in London, and Chinese scientists discovered pink flowering plants in caves in Guangxi province, China, reported Livescience. .

"When we first entered the cave, I felt enchanted by the scenery like the moon in the cave. I could see the trees in the dim landscape ," Monro said.

The team calls the new plant Pilea cavernicola . This species belongs to the nettle family. It does not grow in completely dark conditions, but only requires an environment with a brightness equivalent to 0.04% of sunlight.

Experts also found two other nettle species in canyons in Guangxi province. One of the two species also has pink flowers.

Biologists believe that about 700 species of Pilea species exist throughout the planet, but humans have only found two-thirds of them.