The bright green flower Fritillaria delavayi has been harvested by humans for medical purposes for the last 2,000 years. Now, it's turning brown in order to camouflage. According to Live Science, researchers studying the Fritillaria delavayi, the plant is gradually losing its bright mature colouring in exchange for a more subtle hue. The researchers think that this is a defence mechanism that the plant has developed in order to hide from the hands of humans.
Researchers investigated the plant’s shift in colouration by interviewing locals about which areas were most harvested. Then they examined records that counted the annual weight of bulbs harvested in the last five years. A computer-based experiment confirmed that the green-coloured plants were a lot easier to detect by collectors compared to the grey-brown varieties, especially against the rocky background.
“It’s remarkable to see how humans can have such a direct and dramatic impact on the colouration of wild organisms, not just on their survival but on their evolution itself,” said Martin Stevens, a researcher from the Center for Ecology and Conservation.
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