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This is really important for a plant that needs to respond quickly to take advantage of fleeting conditions. When dried, some enzymes were found to be working at upwards of 75% efficiency of those found in hydrated tissues. lepidophylla is able to maintain enzyme activities within its cells at much higher levels during desiccation periods than was initially thought possible. More work is needed to say for sure.įinally, it would appear that S. lepidophylla, suggesting that they may be playing a bigger role than we ever realized. Sorbitol and xylitol are found in much higher concentrations within the tissues of S. Instead, it has been found that other sugars may actually be playing a bigger role in protecting the inner workings of this plant. Though it is certainly present in its tissues, more wet-loving species of Selaginella contain much higher amounts of this sugar. lepidophylla doesn't produce a lot of trehalose. Trehalose is known to bind to important proteins and membranes in other desiccation-tolerant organisms, thus protecting them from damage and allowing them to quickly return to their normal function as soon as water returns.Īn analysis of non-desiccating Selaginella species, however, showed that S. For a while it was thought that, similar to other organisms that undergo such dramatic desiccation, the plant relies on a special sugar called trehalose. lepidophylla survives such drastic shifts. lepidophylla are able to fold and unfold without any major structural damage.Īs far as metabolism and chemistry is concerned, however, we are still trying to figure out how S. Unlike other plants that snap when folded, the cells of S. To this, the plant owes its success to rather flexible cell walls. Indeed, plants that were kept from curling up experienced irreversible damage to their photo systems and were not as healthy as plants that did curl up. By curling up, the plant essentially shelters these tissues from the sun. Without water in its tissues, its sensitive photosynthetic machinery would easily become damaged by punishing UV rays. What we do know is that part of its success has to do with curling up into a ball. How does the plant manage to do this? Why doesn't it simply die? The answer to these questions has been the subject of quite a bit of debate and investigation. Such conditions are short lived, of course, so after a few days drying out, the plant shrivels up and returns to its dormant, ball-like state. Wet this crispy bundle and watch as over the course of about a day, the dormant ball unfurls to reveal the stunning body of a photosynthetic spikemoss ready to take advantage of moist conditions.
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With little in the way of roots anchoring it to the ground, dormant plants are often at the mercy of the winds, which blows them around like a tiny tumbleweed until they are wedged into a crack or crevice. As its water supply dwindles, the whole body of the plant curls up into a tight ball and waits. A plant can either store water for those lean times or go dormant until the rains return.
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lepidophylla is a wonderful reminder of that.Īs you can probably imagine, tolerating near-complete desiccation can be pretty beneficial when your habitat receives an average of only 235 mm (9.3 in) of rain each year. However, this lineage has not survived hundreds of millions of years by being overly sensitive to environmental change and S. This is a harsh habitat for most plants, let alone a Lycophyte. Selaginella lepidophylla is native to the Chihuahuan desert, spanning the border between the US and Mexico. It is in a state of dormancy that we are still struggling to understand. A dormant resurrection plant is far from dead, however. Indeed, even the common name of "resurrection plant" suggests that this species miraculously returns from the dead with the simple addition of water. No wonder then why this hardy spikemoss has become such a novelty item for those looking for a unique gift. It is understandable why one would look at the crispy brown bundle of a Selaginella lepidophylla and think that it was dead.