Tucson Chapter meeting for February 2025
Posted Feb 05, 2025
Uninvited Guests – The Lifestyles of Parasitic Plants
Presented by Pinau Merlin, Naturalist and Author
Thursday, February 13, 2025
Meeting and Presentation, 7pm in person and on Zoom (click to go to zoom)
U of A campus, Environment and Natural Resources Building (ENR2),1064 E. Lowell Street, Tucson AZ Room S225
Psittacanthus sonorae. Photo by Mark Dimmit
Humans often harbor prejudices regarding parasites, but parasitic plants have evolved fascinating adaptive strategies for their lifestyles, as well as providing some surprising benefits to wildlife and people. Although only 1% of angiosperms are parasitic, they are very successful. What factors foster the evolution of parasitism? What stimulates germination and how do these plants find their hosts? How do parasitic plants affect community structure? Let’s have a closer look at these plants to see what’s going on under the surface.
Arceuthobium microcarpum. Photo by Pinau Merlin
Pinau Merlin is a naturalist, speaker and writer and a long-time member of AZNPS. She is the author of several books and over 100 articles about the wildlife, natural history and ecology of the desert southwest, and was a contributing author to The Natural History of the Sonoran Desert. Pinau is also a natural history consultant for nature documentary films about the Sonoran Desert region. Her work has been featured on PBS and NPR and in Smithsonian and National Wildlife magazines.
Pinau Merlin
