A new species of water lily discovered this year helps prove the theory of evolution, a Manitoba scientist says.
"This species isn't just new to Manitoba, it is a new species of plant that has evolved fairly recently," said Diana Robson, the Manitoba Museum's curator of botany. "Evolution isn't just something that occurred in the past; it's happening right now."
"New species evolve when individuals obtain new genetic material that makes them well adapted to new habitats. Mutation is one way that organisms obtain new genetic information, and hybridization is another."
The new species is a hybrid. It arose when two fairly common species of water lily, Leiberg's Water-lily (Nymphaea leibergii) and Fragrant Water-lily (Nymphaea odorata) interbred.
Although plant hybrids form regularly, they are usually sterile and unable to reproduce.
It is the only documented population of this type of new water lily in Manitoba, Robson said, and is a fertile hybrid that is reproducing. So it's considered to be a brand-new species.
It's also quite rare. There are fewer than 500 of them in existence, Robson said, and they should probably be protected.
Robson was alerted to the possibility a new plant species existed in northern Manitoba by John Wiersema, a biologist and water-lily expert with the United States Department of Agriculture. In an old collection, Wiersema found documented a strange specimen of water lily that was collected in Manitoba 60 years ago.
Intrigued by its unusual characteristics, Wiersema and another colleague visited the Minago River about 100 kilometres north of Lake Winnipeg in 1996 and 2000 to find the plant, with no luck.
This year, after a two-hour plane trip and a one-hour boat ride on the same river with local guides, Wiersema and Robson found the rare new lily.
The new species appears to have evolved within the last 2,000 years, she said, and is unusual for Canada.
"Part of what was exciting about this was that the flora in Canada is quite well-known. Most scientists don't really expect to find a new species of plant anymore," Robson said.
Quite exciting to see such things happening if you ask me
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That's nothing more than hybridization within a kind!!11!!
I want to see a lily give birth to an oak tree!!111@
Seriously that is pretty cool. Plants aren't as sexy as animals and tend to get short shrift in this discussion, but they account for some really interesting examples of evolution in action.
__________________ (The Library of Alexandria) questioned the permanence of the stars, but did not question the justice of slavery - Carl Sagan in Cosmos
Last edited by USincognito; 16th August 2008 at 08:30 AM.
That's nothing more than hybridization within a kind!!11!!
I want to see a lily give birth to an oak tree!!111@
*sigh* I wonder how long till someone posts something like that here. And not in jest.
Originally Posted by USincognito
Seriously that is pretty cool. Plants aren't as sexy as animals and tend to get short shrift in this discussion, but they account for some really interesting examples of evolution in action.
Still life, as much as anything else. So I think this is very exciting. Mutation is a daily matter - more easily seen in bacteria, viri and parasites. But still an everyday matter. Something as significant and clear-cut as this makes it very exciting.
To me, it is more than just another piece of evidence in support of evolution. It is also looking at the ever ongoing creation. Seeing the hand of God still painting on this marvelous canvas that is our universe. And that, to me, becomes a religious experience of sorts. Then again, all scientific discovery is like a religious experience to me. I love knowledge and the acquisition thereof.
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Originally Posted by Martin Luther King Jr.
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Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.
Originally Posted by Bertrand Russell
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Advocates of capitalism are very apt to appeal to the sacred principles of liberty, which are embodied in one maxim:
The fortunate must not be restrained in the exercise of tyranny over the unfortunate.
"no man can serve two masters; ye cannot serve both God and mammon." - Bible (Matthew 6:24)
and yet plants came upon carnivory on their own. Plant evolution can be just as fascinating.
Yes, and it's my opinion there aren't enough paleo- or just plain botanists (or entomologists, for that matter) running about loose on the intarwebz. I need them around for random brain picking.
You can find them if you look hard, but they seem less likely to join in conversations than, say, zoologists or geologists.
Yes, and it's my opinion there aren't enough paleo- or just plain botanists (or entomologists, for that matter) running about loose on the intarwebz. I need them around for random brain picking.
You can find them if you look hard, but they seem less likely to join in conversations than, say, zoologists or geologists.
To be fair zoological finds make the news and animals are much more represented in the fossil record. Geology is also directly attacked with flood nonsense. I think the field that is most underepresented in these discussions is astronomy. The evidence that the universe is 7 orders of magnitude older than YEC claims in astronomy is even more copious and even more extreme in scale. The lone fact that we have seen supernovae (a star has completed its life cycle) proves that the universe is older than 6-10kyo.
To be fair zoological finds make the news and animals are much more represented in the fossil record. Geology is also directly attacked with flood nonsense. I think the field that is most underepresented in these discussions is astronomy. The evidence that the universe is 7 orders of magnitude older than YEC claims in astronomy is even more copious and even more extreme in scale. The lone fact that we have seen supernovae (a star has completed its life cycle) proves that the universe is older than 6-10kyo.
Astronomy is "most 'underrepresented'" because it plays no part in the evolution of organisms. That YEC's like to included it in their attack on evolution is simply a matter of their gross ignorance. Please leave astronomy out of the equation.
Astronomy is "most 'underrepresented'" because it plays no part in the evolution of organisms. That YEC's like to included it in their attack on evolution is simply a matter of their gross ignorance. Please leave astronomy out of the equation.
Yes when we are talking about biological evolution, astronomy plays no role. But their ignorance is so vast and broad that they inevitably attack big bang and billions of years. These charges must be addressed. Flood geology isnt really about evolution either but geology must still be invoked to address their claims.
__________________ "Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except in the Light of Evolution" - Theodosius Dobzhansky
Sometimes I hate modern journalism. I suppose we should be thankful that this new kind of plant has come along to "prove evolution." I was holding my breath there for a while.
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New water lily species called proof of evolution 
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