Desiccation Tolerant (DT) vascular plants
Source : Down To Earth
GS III : Environment
Overview
- News in Brief
- Desiccation-tolerant vascular (DT) plants
Why in News ?
India’s biodiversity hotspot, the Western Ghats, is home to 62 Desiccation-Tolerant Vascular Plant Species which could have applications in agriculture, particularly in areas with scarcity of water.
- Based on a recent study by scientists from Agharkar Research Institute (ARI) Pune.
Desiccation-tolerant vascular (DT) plants
- They are able to withstand extreme dehydration.
Source: PIB Video Source: Corallodiscus lanuginosus - Losing up to 95% of their water content, and they revive themselves once water is available again.
- This unique ability allows them to survive in harsh, arid environments.
- This would be uninhabitable for most other plants.
- Ferricretes (layers of sedimentary rock) and basaltic plateaus seemed to be the preferred habitats.
- DT plants have been studied for their possible applications in agriculture, particularly in areas with limited water resources.
- In tropical regions, they are the predominant occupants of rock outcrops.
What are different Desiccation Tolerant plants found?
- 16 are Indian endemic.
- 12 are exclusive to the Western Ghats outcrops.
- Nine genera of DT plants are reported as new.
- Tripogon capillatus representing the first record of an epiphytic DT angiosperm.
- Also provides the first field observation-based proof of DT properties of the gesneriad Corallodiscus lanuginosus
- In addition to rock outcrops, tree trunks in the partially shaded forests were also found
- They are crucial habitats for DT species, as per the study.
How this study helps?
- Provide valuable insights into the biodiversity and ecology of the Western Ghats.
- Aid in the conservation of DT plant species.
- By understanding the mechanisms of DT plants could lead to the development of crops that are more drought-resistant and require less water.
- Some species were found to survive at increasing temperatures, which is crucial during the period of global warming.
Daily Current Affairs : Click Here