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Plants 'Recognize' Their Siblings
An anonymous reader writes to tell us that according to a recent study, Biologists have found that plants are able to recognize their own relatives. "Researchers at McMaster University have found that plants get fiercely competitive when forced to share their pot with strangers of the same species, but they're accommodating when potted with their siblings. [...] Though they lack cognition and memory, the study shows plants are capable of complex social behaviours such as altruism towards relatives, says Dudley. Like humans, the most interesting behaviours occur beneath the surface."
Disclaimer : I'm not a plant biologist. I'm a physical biochemist.
The process of biochemically detecting neighboring organisms is not new. Bacteria use quorum sensing biochemical pathways to "communicate" various things about environment such as population density -- molecules are exchanged and recognized in the extracellular environment.
What is interesting here is that presummably there are different signals for siblings and non-siblings. A more interesting result, in my opinion, would be to find the biochemical connection to this selective quorum sensing. The answer could be complicated : it could include libraries of biochemicals (in varying concentrations) and differences in bacterial flora between plants.
I had the same thought (reading way too much into this). Perhaps roots of related plants are toxic to each other and that's why the roots don't spread. Roots of unrelated plants are not toxic to each other. This could be an evolutionary adaptation that encourages cross-breeding of unrelated plants.
Regardless, there are a number of possible reasons for the effect.
Best regards.
Plants are highly immobile, and food for both both dogs and humans. Don't anthropomorphise species which are not human, especially not within a scientific context like this. It's actually quite likely that plants treat 'sibling' plants as an extension of themselves; it's a highly logical adaptation. Instead of being two separate plants, they are two growths of the same plant, and thus do not compete, as fighting with that which is yourself (read: more or less the same DNA) is futile and does not further propagation of the genetic code. The reason animals fight is due to the vast genetic variation between siblings; also for purposes of entertainment and education. Even twins will fight in species with developed brains, for then memetic influence becomes key on top of genetic influence.
Disclaimer, I have been reading far too much Dawkins, I am not a biologist
You're right. I do have my own set of ethics governing what I eat, but as I said, I feel no reason to justify them to you or anyone else. As long as I'm not doing anything illegal, and more importantly, affecting *you*... why do you care?
Other than that, your 'conclusions' about me are... well... let's just say uninformed.