{"id":2112678,"date":"2026-08-26T09:54:48","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T06:54:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2112678"},"modified":"2026-08-26T09:54:48","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T06:54:48","slug":"mini-jungle-alaska-is-getting-greener-as-the-climate-warms-with-cascading-effects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2112678","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Mini jungle&#8217;: Alaska is getting greener as the climate warms \u2013 with cascading effects"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/93\/98\/1200x675_cmsv2_e700c7ab-56f4-58c5-a28a-64e2351e5101-9889398.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article id=\"abe-2920699-pos1-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2920699\" data-cid=\"9889665\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920699-label-pos1-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/95\/20\/189x106_cmsv2_f45a0896-cd09-5b31-96b4-4465f9fa24e7-9889520.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"An Air France plane takes off from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Thursday 6 November 2025, in SeaTac, Washington state.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Health news<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    French flight attendant&#8217;s cancer recognised as occupational disease\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920635-pos2-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2920635\" data-cid=\"9889537\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920635-label-pos2-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/91\/74\/189x106_cmsv2_1bf7d854-5df5-5e66-ac00-5704ccf941eb-9889174.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"File photo showing a grey wolf at the Wildlife Science Center in Forest Lake, Minnesota. (AP Photo\/Dawn Villella, File)\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Europe News<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Wolf sightings rise in Italy after suspected attacks\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920216-pos3-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2920216\" data-cid=\"9887046\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920216-label-pos3-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/70\/46\/189x106_cmsv2_842e29ce-7a1d-5585-b548-94b51eaa432f-9887046.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"The property takes its name from its former role as the porter house of the nearby Hotel des Postes et des T\u00e9l\u00e9graphes\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><span class=\"c-icon-gallery the-media-object__icon\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.euronews.com\/images\/vector\/camera.svg\" width=\"21\" height=\"21\" alt loading=\"lazy\"><\/span><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Travel News<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Boutique heritage hotel set to open in the heart of Ghent\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920706-pos4-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2920706\" data-cid=\"9889599\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920706-label-pos4-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/95\/99\/189x106_cmsv2_5e98c9b9-bb19-5bd6-b6af-fa5aabd3af28-9889599.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Damaged houses stand precariously near the banks of the Trishuli River after flash floods in the Nuwakot district, 26 August, 2026\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Nepal<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Nepal floods kill eight at China border, cause casualties in Tibet\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920699-pos1-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2\" data-nid=\"2920699\" data-cid=\"9889665\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920699-label-pos1-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/95\/20\/189x106_cmsv2_f45a0896-cd09-5b31-96b4-4465f9fa24e7-9889520.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"An Air France plane takes off from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Thursday 6 November 2025, in SeaTac, Washington state.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Health news<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    French flight attendant&#8217;s cancer recognised as occupational disease\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920635-pos2-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2\" data-nid=\"2920635\" data-cid=\"9889537\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920635-label-pos2-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/91\/74\/189x106_cmsv2_1bf7d854-5df5-5e66-ac00-5704ccf941eb-9889174.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"File photo showing a grey wolf at the Wildlife Science Center in Forest Lake, Minnesota. (AP Photo\/Dawn Villella, File)\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Europe News<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Wolf sightings rise in Italy after suspected attacks\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920216-pos3-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2\" data-nid=\"2920216\" data-cid=\"9887046\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920216-label-pos3-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/70\/46\/189x106_cmsv2_842e29ce-7a1d-5585-b548-94b51eaa432f-9887046.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"The property takes its name from its former role as the porter house of the nearby Hotel des Postes et des T\u00e9l\u00e9graphes\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><span class=\"c-icon-gallery the-media-object__icon\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.euronews.com\/images\/vector\/camera.svg\" width=\"21\" height=\"21\" alt loading=\"lazy\"><\/span><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Travel News<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Boutique heritage hotel set to open in the heart of Ghent\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920706-pos4-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2\" data-nid=\"2920706\" data-cid=\"9889599\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920706-label-pos4-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/95\/99\/189x106_cmsv2_5e98c9b9-bb19-5bd6-b6af-fa5aabd3af28-9889599.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Damaged houses stand precariously near the banks of the Trishuli River after flash floods in the Nuwakot district, 26 August, 2026\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Nepal<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Nepal floods kill eight at China border, cause casualties in Tibet\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"helper-site-row o-article-newsy\">\n<div class=\"helper-site-container o-article-newsy__container\">\n<div class=\"o-article-newsy__main\">\n<header class=\"h-grid o-article-newsy__main__header\">\n<nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumbs\" class=\"c-article-breadcrumbs\">\n<div id=\"adb-article-breadcrumb\" class=\"c-article-breadcrumbs__list\">\n<p>                          Earth<\/p>\n<p>                          Climate<\/p><\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<h1 class=\"c-article-redesign-title\">\n                            &#8216;Mini jungle&#8217;: Alaska is getting greener as the climate warms \u2013 with cascading effects<\/h1>\n<div class=\"c-article-image-video u-position-relative \">\n<div class=\"js-superdiv u-aspect-ratio-16x9 u-position-relative \" data-controller=\"video-player\" data-sponsored=\"Partner content\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"js-poster-img c-article-media__img\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/93\/98\/1536x864_cmsv2_e700c7ab-56f4-58c5-a28a-64e2351e5101-9889398.jpg\" width=\"1536\" height=\"864\" loading=\"eager\" alt=\"FILE - Onion Portage, a critical migration route for the Western Arctic Caribou Herd along the Kobuk River near Ambler, Alaska, is visible, Sept. 30, 2025. \"><\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-caption u-position-absolute\"><i id=\"article-caption-content\" class=\"c-article-caption__content\"><span class=\"c-article-caption__text\"><br \/>\n              FILE &#8211; Onion Portage, a critical migration route for the Western Arctic Caribou Herd along the Kobuk River near Ambler, Alaska, is visible, Sept. 30, 2025.<br \/>\n                    <span class=\"u-color-white\">&#8211;\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"c-article-caption__copyright\">Copyright\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"c-article-caption__credit\">AP Photo\/Annika Hammerschlag, File<\/span><\/span><\/i><\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-image-copyright c-article-image-copyright--novideo\">\n      Copyright\u00a0AP Photo\/Annika Hammerschlag, File\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"h-grid o-article-newsy__main__body u-article-content\">\n<div class=\"o-article-newsy__contributors-publication-date\">\n<div class=\"c-article-contributors\">\n  By&amp;nbspAngela Symons&amp;nbspwith&amp;nbsp<b>AP<\/b><\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-publication-date\" data-timestamp=\"1787738088\">\n         Published on<br \/>\n            <time datetime=\"2026-08-26 11:54:48 +02:00\">26\/08\/2026 &#8211; 11:54 GMT+2<\/time><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-share-comment u-align-items-center u-display-flex\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__links 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loading=\"lazy\"><span>Bluesky<\/span><\/span><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/vector\/social-icons\/article-redesign-bluesky.svg\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" alt=\"bluesky\" class=\"u-show-for-desktop\" loading=\"lazy\"><span class=\"u-display-flex u-gap-1 u-show-for-mobile-only\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/vector\/social-icons\/article-redesign-threads.svg\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" alt=\"threads\" loading=\"lazy\"><span>Threads<\/span><\/span><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/vector\/social-icons\/article-redesign-threads.svg\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" alt=\"threads\" class=\"u-show-for-desktop\" loading=\"lazy\"><span class=\"u-display-flex u-gap-1 u-show-for-mobile-only\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/vector\/social-icons\/article-redesign-whatsapp.svg\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" alt=\"whatsapp\" loading=\"lazy\"><span>Whatsapp<\/span><\/span><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/vector\/social-icons\/article-redesign-whatsapp.svg\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" alt=\"whatsapp\" class=\"u-show-for-desktop\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"c-article-summary\">\n        A lush knee-high jungle grows in the Arctic, but warming is changing Earth&#8217;s mini-greenhouse.<br \/>\n    <\/h2>\n<div class=\"c-article-content c-article-content--earth js-article-content\">\n<p>With no tall trees reaching to the sky, Alaska&#8217;s North Slope tundra can look desolate.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"c-ad u-show-for-mobile-only\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt loading=\"lazy\"><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-ad u-show-for-desktop\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt loading=\"lazy\"><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>But up close, \u201cthe tundra&#8217;s kind of like the jungle\u201d, says Adam Bloom, a Florida Atlantic University plant biology student. Except this lush Arctic jungle tops out at about 25 centimetres.<\/p>\n<p>The spongy soil was frozen solid a few weeks earlier. Now, knee-high dwarf birch trees and short but showy rhododendrons sprout from the North Slope, a vast and sparsely populated treeless area stretching from the Brooks mountain range to the <strong>Arctic Ocean<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>For centuries, Arctic cold has kept plant life small, a sort of dollhouse of Earth&#8217;s miniatures. The extreme environment has long given researchers a unique perspective on what makes <strong>plants<\/strong> grow, insight that would be hard to obtain elsewhere. <\/p>\n<p>Now it offers them one of the world\u2019s most useful windows on how climate change affects plant life, with the Arctic warming <strong>four times faster<\/strong> than the rest of Earth, especially in the winter. <\/p>\n<div class=\"c-widget-related\" data-stories-id data-event=\"widget_related\">\n<div class=\"c-widget-related__title\"><b class=\"c-widget-related__title__text\" lang=\"en\">Related<\/b><\/div>\n<ul class=\"c-widget-related__list\">\n<li class=\"c-widget-related__item\">Dried up creeks and missing waterfalls: What I found on a trip to Austria\u2019s most famous gorge<\/li>\n<li class=\"c-widget-related__item\">&#8216;It&#8217;s a nightmare&#8217;: What life is like under Mount Etna&#8217;s cloud of ash<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>For example, researchers at the Toolik Field Station, 320 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle, are studying whether plants facing these harsh conditions evolve to compete or cooperate with one another.<\/p>\n<p>Studies show that the colder and further north in the <strong>Arctic<\/strong>, the smaller the plant life. There are several reasons, but the main one is that life is rough in the winter. Anything that protrudes above the shallow, insulating snow cover is more prone to being damaged by the cold and wind or eaten by wildlife, says plant ecologist Anne Bjorkman of the University of Gothenburg in Sweden.<\/p>\n<p>Plus the frozen permafrost doesn&#8217;t allow roots to grow too deep, she says.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-image widget--size-fullwidth widget--animation-fade-in widget--align-center\" data-ratio=\"0.6665\">\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n<div class=\"widget__contents\">\n<figure class=\"widget__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"widgetImage__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/93\/98\/808x539_cmsv2_a9b4559c-af1a-5c29-b016-e4bce46f5d23-9889398.jpg\" alt=\"FILE - J\u00f8rgen Kristensen rides with his sled dogs in Ilulissat, Greenland, Jan. 27, 2026. \"><figcaption class=\"widget__caption\"><span class=\"widget__captionWrap\"><span class=\"widget__captionText\">FILE &#8211; J\u00f8rgen Kristensen rides with his sled dogs in Ilulissat, Greenland, Jan. 27, 2026. <\/span><span class=\"widget__captionCredit\">AP Photo\/Evgeniy Maloletka, File<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Alaska is getting greener as climate warms<\/h2>\n<p>But the cold is weakening and the miniatures are stretching. This part of Alaska is about 2.7 degrees Celsius <strong>warmer<\/strong> than it was 40 years ago mostly because of the burning of <strong>coal, oil and gas<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPlants that are already there are growing taller,\u201d Bjorkman says, adding that they&#8217;re likely to grow even taller in the future.<\/p>\n<p>And they are getting greener. Some of the long-term studies here are \u201ctrying to understand what controls how much plants grow, what controls how green it is,\u201d and how all that is changing, says Columbia University ecologist Duncan Menge.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, taller <strong>plants<\/strong> that previously couldn&#8217;t survive the cold are moving in, Bjorkman says.<\/p>\n<p>This process, called shrubification, can accelerate warming because of how the plants trap heat, says University of Colorado plant ecologist Sarah Elmendorf. Canopies of the taller, darker shrubs stick out of the snow and absorb more energy from the sun than the blanket of white snow, which reflects heat back.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s certainly a major fingerprint of change that we can see,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-image widget--size-fullwidth widget--animation-fade-in widget--align-center\" data-ratio=\"0.6665\">\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n<div class=\"widget__contents\">\n<figure class=\"widget__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"widgetImage__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/93\/98\/808x539_cmsv2_317482b7-efc8-56ea-a9ab-7aa8d1413861-9889398.jpg\" alt=\"FILE - Snow covers the mountains of the Brooks Range in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Oct. 14, 2024, near Kaktovik, Alaska. \"><figcaption class=\"widget__caption\"><span class=\"widget__captionWrap\"><span class=\"widget__captionText\">FILE &#8211; Snow covers the mountains of the Brooks Range in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Oct. 14, 2024, near Kaktovik, Alaska. <\/span><span class=\"widget__captionCredit\">AP Photo\/Lindsey Wasson, File<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Darker tundra absorbing more radiation is \u201cone of the main reasons for what we call <strong>arctic amplification<\/strong>, which causes climate change to accelerate\u201d especially in the Arctic, Menge says.<\/p>\n<p>The shrubs also trap more snow. That snow warms the ground below and allows microbes during the winter to release more of the heat-trapping gas <strong>methane<\/strong>, Elmendorf says. The added greenery from the taller plants and shrubs could compensate somewhat by absorbing more carbon dioxide, she says.<\/p>\n<p>Expanding stands of willows seem to be providing more shade to streams and changing the ecology of fish, insects and <strong>birds<\/strong>, according to Chris Neill and Linda Deegan of the Woodwell Climate Research Center. They are conducting a multiyear study to see if an ecosystem adapts and even genetically evolves to handle the stress of <strong>climate change<\/strong>. If that is happening, it offers hope for the survival of some of the most fragile Arctic ecosystems, Deegan says.<\/p>\n<div class=\"c-widget-related\" data-stories-id data-event=\"widget_related\">\n<div class=\"c-widget-related__title\"><b class=\"c-widget-related__title__text\" lang=\"en\">Related<\/b><\/div>\n<ul class=\"c-widget-related__list\">\n<li class=\"c-widget-related__item\">El Ni\u00f1o could be &#8216;strongest in living memory&#8217;. When will Europe feel its wrath?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-image widget--size-fullwidth widget--animation-fade-in widget--align-center\" data-ratio=\"0.6665\">\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n<div class=\"widget__contents\">\n<figure class=\"widget__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"widgetImage__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/93\/98\/808x539_cmsv2_c6f77211-f9c8-5216-b653-2c05eb4ed074-9889398.jpg\" alt=\"FILE - The Kaktovik Lagoon and the Brooks Range mountains of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge are visible in the distance, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Kaktovik, Alaska. \"><figcaption class=\"widget__caption\"><span class=\"widget__captionWrap\"><span class=\"widget__captionText\">FILE &#8211; The Kaktovik Lagoon and the Brooks Range mountains of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge are visible in the distance, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Kaktovik, Alaska. <\/span><span class=\"widget__captionCredit\">AP Photo\/Lindsey Wasson, File<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Using a magnifying lens to appreciate tiny plants<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cTiny changes in a tiny jungle make a big difference,\u201d says Jake Francis, a professor at Florida Atlantic University, as he examines the tiny flora at his feet on his first foray into the Arctic.<\/p>\n<p>Big trees in Francis&#8217; home base of Florida are showy and amaze people because they&#8217;re so easy to see, he says. But here on Toolik Lake&#8217;s spongy tussocks \u2013 clumps of plants that jut upward, making walking an ankle-turning adventure \u2013 Francis says, \u201cwe have three or four different species of flowering plants growing. We have mosses. We have liverworts and it&#8217;s the same thing. Layers growing on top of plants on top of plants on top of plants. But it&#8217;s not yelling at us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou have to get down there and stop and look,\u201d Francis says. \u201cYou could walk right past it and not even see it. And so this is what to me is cool.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-image widget--size-fullwidth widget--animation-fade-in widget--align-center\" data-ratio=\"0.6665\">\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n<div class=\"widget__contents\">\n<figure class=\"widget__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"widgetImage__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/93\/98\/808x539_cmsv2_e2f44b7d-2fdb-5f83-88c7-900abb6c967c-9889398.jpg\" alt=\"FILE - The northern lights, or the aurora borealis, appear in the sky over Rat Lake in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories on Aug.8, 2024. \"><figcaption class=\"widget__caption\"><span class=\"widget__captionWrap\"><span class=\"widget__captionText\">FILE &#8211; The northern lights, or the aurora borealis, appear in the sky over Rat Lake in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories on Aug.8, 2024. <\/span><span class=\"widget__captionCredit\">Bill Braden\/The Canadian Press via AP, File<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>What helps plants&#8217; survival, competition or cooperation?<\/h2>\n<p>These plants are competing for sun, nutrients, water and especially <strong>pollination<\/strong> in this harsh environment of limited but intense sunlight. Francis and his students are examining if it&#8217;s more cooperative than the long assumed life-or-death competition. Francis&#8217; team focuses on a specific parasitic plant \u2013 the Arctic lousewort \u2013 that they think is getting a bad rap. The Arctic lousewort taps into the roots of nearby plants to suck out nutrients.<\/p>\n<p>Sure, it&#8217;s a vampire, siphoning resources from its neighbours. But doctoral student Jonathan Carcache theorises that the lousewort is helping its neighbours as much as stealing from them. That&#8217;s because its dramatic shaft of purple flowers catches the attention of the not-so-plentiful <strong>bumblebees<\/strong> here \u201clike a billboard that advertises pollination\u201d, he says. And once that sought-after bee arrives, everyone gets pollinated.<\/p>\n<p>To test their theory, Carcache and Bloom play bee. It&#8217;s a painstaking, difficult task that they split between them. Bloom uses tweezers to remove a plant&#8217;s male parts, and back at the lab he uses a mechanical device to shake out the pollen. It takes several hours each night to produce less than a teaspoon full of microscopic pollen grains.<\/p>\n<div class=\"c-widget-related\" data-stories-id data-event=\"widget_related\">\n<div class=\"c-widget-related__title\"><b class=\"c-widget-related__title__text\" lang=\"en\">Related<\/b><\/div>\n<ul class=\"c-widget-related__list\">\n<li class=\"c-widget-related__item\">More squid and octopus in the North Sea: What&#8217;s behind the boom?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>Then Carcache finishes the job, belly-first on the ground and trying not to crush any of the plants they have come to study. Wearing a net over his head and nitrile gloves to protect him from swarming mosquitoes, he takes a paintbrush to dip grains of pollen on just the right female parts of neighbouring heather blossoms.<\/p>\n<p>By doing the bees&#8217; job, Carcache and Bloom hope to figure out whether the plants around the parasite are pollinated more than those further away. If so, there&#8217;s a fair trade taking place, rather than one plant simply taking advantage of others.<\/p>\n<p>Amid the stresses of the Arctic, scientists are rethinking the idea that all life is a cutthroat competition with <strong>winners and losers<\/strong>. It might be more about mutualism, with plant species cooperating so that everybody survives, like the lousewort and its neighbours, Francis says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt would be wonderful if humans were the same way,\u201d Francis says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>                                  Go to accessibility shortcuts<\/p>\n<div class=\"c-article-share-comment u-align-items-center u-display-flex\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__links u-align-items-center u-display-flex u-justify-content-center js-c-article-share-comment-share\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label\">Share<\/span><\/span><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label\">Comments<\/span><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label c-article-share-comment__label--always\">Add Euronews on Google<\/span><\/div>\n<div id=\"adb-article-you-might-also-like\" class=\"perf-cv-auto c-article-you-might-also-like\">\n<h2 class=\"c-article-you-might-also-like__title\">\n        Read more<br \/>\n      <\/h2>\n<div class=\"c-article-you-might-also-like__container\">\n<article id=\"abe-2919969-pos0-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2919969\" data-cid=\"9888041\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2919969-label-pos0-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/57\/02\/480x270_cmsv2_1a6e9dd3-66e9-5d34-a36d-3ac5e0d41e34-9885702.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Ash and charred trees in a forest after a fire in Carc\u00e8s, France, on Thursday 6 August 2026.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Climate<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    What role will climate play in France&#8217;s presidential race?<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920249-pos1-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1 the-media-object--has-video\" data-nid=\"2920249\" data-cid=\"9887183\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920249-label-pos1-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/71\/67\/480x270_cmsv2_0c78363f-b5a6-5559-bbb4-6d342195e137-9887167.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"A powerful tornado caused extensive damage in the Aude d\u00e9partement on Monday.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Climate<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Tornado tears through village in south-west France<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2907079-pos2-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2907079\" data-cid=\"9824467\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2907079-label-pos2-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/82\/44\/67\/480x270_cmsv2_3b20cef3-c940-58b6-b5ea-10d25e498d52-9824467.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"A firefighter battles the Canyon Fire on Aug. 7, 2025, in Hasley Canyon, California.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Climate<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    El Ni\u00f1o to be &#8216;strongest in living memory&#8217;. Should Europe be worried?<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"perf-cv-auto\">\n<ul id=\"adb-article-tags\" class=\"c-tags-list\">\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  melting ice<br \/>\n<\/section>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  Plants<br \/>\n<\/section>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  Arctic<br \/>\n<\/section>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  Alaska<br \/>\n<\/section>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  Snow<br \/>\n<\/section>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  Global warming and climate change<br 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src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-ad u-show-for-mobile-only\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"perf-cv-auto c-most-viewed\">\n<h2 class=\"c-most-viewed__title qa-section-title\">Most read<\/h2>\n<div class=\"c-most-viewed__list\">\n<div class=\"c-most-viewed__item\"><span class=\"c-most-viewed__item__number\">1<\/span><\/p>\n<article id=\"abe-2920442-pos1-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920442\" data-cid=\"9888192\" data-part-label=\"Partner 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the-media-object--has-related the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920249\" data-cid=\"9887183\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Tornado tears through village in south-west France<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-most-viewed__item\"><span class=\"c-most-viewed__item__number\">4<\/span><\/p>\n<article id=\"abe-2920142-pos4-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920142\" data-cid=\"9886620\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    \u2018Bioloon\u2019: UK scientists invent revolutionary biodegradable balloon<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-most-viewed__item\"><span class=\"c-most-viewed__item__number\">5<\/span><\/p>\n<article id=\"abe-2904659-pos5-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--has-video the-media-object--has-related the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2904659\" data-cid=\"9812247\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Tourists disappointed as Eiffel Tower closes amid heatwave<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"perf-cv-auto c-ad-wrapper o-article-newsy__aside__content-3\" data-ad-name=\"adzone-halfpage\">\n<div class=\"c-ad c-ad-halfpage u-show-for-desktop\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-ad u-show-for-mobile-only\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2919969-pos0-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2919969\" data-cid=\"9888041\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2919969-label-pos0-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/57\/02\/480x270_cmsv2_1a6e9dd3-66e9-5d34-a36d-3ac5e0d41e34-9885702.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Ash and charred trees in a forest after a fire in Carc\u00e8s, France, on Thursday 6 August 2026.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Climate<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    What role will climate play in France&#8217;s presidential race?<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920249-pos1-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1 the-media-object--has-video\" data-nid=\"2920249\" data-cid=\"9887183\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920249-label-pos1-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/71\/67\/480x270_cmsv2_0c78363f-b5a6-5559-bbb4-6d342195e137-9887167.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"A powerful tornado caused extensive damage in the Aude d\u00e9partement on Monday.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Climate<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Tornado tears through village in south-west France<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2907079-pos2-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2907079\" data-cid=\"9824467\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2907079-label-pos2-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/82\/44\/67\/480x270_cmsv2_3b20cef3-c940-58b6-b5ea-10d25e498d52-9824467.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"A firefighter battles the Canyon Fire on Aug. 7, 2025, in Hasley Canyon, California.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Climate<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    El Ni\u00f1o to be &#8216;strongest in living memory&#8217;. Should Europe be worried?<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920442-pos2-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920442\" data-cid=\"9888192\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920442-label-pos2-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/81\/92\/320x180_cmsv2_18d1e10c-80b5-59b7-90fe-6af9e7a461b7-9888192.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"This composite image of nine separate photographs captured in the duration of the 2017 eclipse on Aug. 21, 2017. \" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Wake up early for Friday\u2019s partial lunar eclipse: Where to see it<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2919969-pos3-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2919969\" data-cid=\"9888041\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2919969-label-pos3-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/57\/02\/320x180_cmsv2_1a6e9dd3-66e9-5d34-a36d-3ac5e0d41e34-9885702.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Ash and charred trees in a forest after a fire in Carc\u00e8s, France, on Thursday 6 August 2026.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    What role will climate play in France&#8217;s presidential race?<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920249-pos4-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--has-video the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920249\" data-cid=\"9887183\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920249-label-pos4-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/71\/67\/320x180_cmsv2_0c78363f-b5a6-5559-bbb4-6d342195e137-9887167.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"A powerful tornado caused extensive damage in the Aude d\u00e9partement on Monday.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Tornado tears through village in south-west France<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920142-pos5-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920142\" data-cid=\"9886620\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920142-label-pos5-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/66\/20\/320x180_cmsv2_220d93c1-9f3c-5e00-8127-b91b5b728def-9886620.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Bioloon co-founders Charlotte Melia and Juliana Cumming \" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    \u2018Bioloon\u2019: UK scientists invent revolutionary biodegradable balloon<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920107-pos6-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920107\" data-cid=\"9886474\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2920107-label-pos6-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/64\/74\/320x180_cmsv2_7707a5bc-b586-569e-9576-8a6d60455263-9886474.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"A scuba diver watches oceanic mantas at the Manta Ridge dive site in Raja Ampat, Indonesia, Saturday, March 7, 2026. \" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    World&#8217;s oceans hit hottest temperature ever recorded in August<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920442-pos1-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920442\" data-cid=\"9888192\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Wake up early for Friday\u2019s partial lunar eclipse: Where to see it<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2919457-pos2-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2919457\" data-cid=\"9884381\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Squid take over the North Sea: What&#8217;s behind the squid boom?<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920249-pos3-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--has-video the-media-object--has-related the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920249\" data-cid=\"9887183\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Tornado tears through village in south-west France<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2920142-pos4-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2920142\" data-cid=\"9886620\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    \u2018Bioloon\u2019: UK scientists invent revolutionary biodegradable balloon<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2904659-pos5-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--has-video the-media-object--has-related the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2904659\" data-cid=\"9812247\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Tourists disappointed as Eiffel Tower closes amid heatwave<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"articleBody\" data-key=\"articleBody\">With no tall trees reaching to the sky, Alaska&#8217;s North Slope tundra can look desolate.But up close, \u201cthe tundra&#8217;s kind of like the jungle\u201d, says Adam Bloom, a Florida Atlantic University plant biology student. Except this lush Arctic jungle tops out at about 25 centimetres.The spongy soil was frozen solid a few weeks earlier. Now, knee-high dwarf birch trees and short but showy rhododendrons sprout from the North Slope, a vast and sparsely populated treeless area stretching from the Brooks mountain range to the Arctic Ocean.For centuries, Arctic cold has kept plant life small, a sort of dollhouse of Earth&#8217;s miniatures. The extreme environment has long given researchers a unique perspective on what makes plants grow, insight that would be hard to obtain elsewhere.Now it offers them one of the world\u2019s most useful windows on how climate change affects plant life, with the Arctic warming four times faster than the rest of Earth, especially in the winter.For example, researchers at the Toolik Field Station, 320 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle, are studying whether plants facing these harsh conditions evolve to compete or cooperate with one another.Studies show that the colder and further north in the Arctic, the smaller the plant life. There are several reasons, but the main one is that life is rough in the winter. Anything that protrudes above the shallow, insulating snow cover is more prone to being damaged by the cold and wind or eaten by wildlife, says plant ecologist Anne Bjorkman of the University of Gothenburg in Sweden.Plus the frozen permafrost doesn&#8217;t allow roots to grow too deep, she says.Alaska is getting greener as climate warmsBut the cold is weakening and the miniatures are stretching. This part of Alaska is about 2.7 degrees Celsius warmer than it was 40 years ago mostly because of the burning of coal, oil and gas.\u201cPlants that are already there are growing taller,\u201d Bjorkman says, adding that they&#8217;re likely to grow even taller in the future.And they are getting greener. Some of the long-term studies here are \u201ctrying to understand what controls how much plants grow, what controls how green it is,\u201d and how all that is changing, says Columbia University ecologist Duncan Menge.Meanwhile, taller plants that previously couldn&#8217;t survive the cold are moving in, Bjorkman says.This process, called shrubification, can accelerate warming because of how the plants trap heat, says University of Colorado plant ecologist Sarah Elmendorf. Canopies of the taller, darker shrubs stick out of the snow and absorb more energy from the sun than the blanket of white snow, which reflects heat back.\u201cIt&#8217;s certainly a major fingerprint of change that we can see,\u201d she says.Darker tundra absorbing more radiation is \u201cone of the main reasons for what we call arctic amplification, which causes climate change to accelerate\u201d especially in the Arctic, Menge says.The shrubs also trap more snow. That snow warms the ground below and allows microbes during the winter to release more of the heat-trapping gas methane, Elmendorf says. The added greenery from the taller plants and shrubs could compensate somewhat by absorbing more carbon dioxide, she says.Expanding stands of willows seem to be providing more shade to streams and changing the ecology of fish, insects and birds, according to Chris Neill and Linda Deegan of the Woodwell Climate Research Center. They are conducting a multiyear study to see if an ecosystem adapts and even genetically evolves to handle the stress of climate change. If that is happening, it offers hope for the survival of some of the most fragile Arctic ecosystems, Deegan says.Using a magnifying lens to appreciate tiny plants\u201cTiny changes in a tiny jungle make a big difference,\u201d says Jake Francis, a professor at Florida Atlantic University, as he examines the tiny flora at his feet on his first foray into the Arctic.Big trees in Francis&#8217; home base of Florida are showy and amaze people because they&#8217;re so easy to see, he says. But here on Toolik Lake&#8217;s spongy tussocks \u2013 clumps of plants that jut upward, making walking an ankle-turning adventure \u2013 Francis says, \u201cwe have three or four different species of flowering plants growing. We have mosses. We have liverworts and it&#8217;s the same thing. Layers growing on top of plants on top of plants on top of plants. But it&#8217;s not yelling at us.\u201d\u201cYou have to get down there and stop and look,\u201d Francis says. \u201cYou could walk right past it and not even see it. And so this is what to me is cool.\u201dWhat helps plants&#8217; survival, competition or cooperation?These plants are competing for sun, nutrients, water and especially pollination in this harsh environment of limited but intense sunlight. Francis and his students are examining if it&#8217;s more cooperative than the long assumed life-or-death competition. Francis&#8217; team focuses on a specific parasitic plant \u2013 the Arctic lousewort \u2013 that they think is getting a bad rap. The Arctic lousewort taps into the roots of nearby plants to suck out nutrients.Sure, it&#8217;s a vampire, siphoning resources from its neighbours. But doctoral student Jonathan Carcache theorises that the lousewort is helping its neighbours as much as stealing from them. That&#8217;s because its dramatic shaft of purple flowers catches the attention of the not-so-plentiful bumblebees here \u201clike a billboard that advertises pollination\u201d, he says. And once that sought-after bee arrives, everyone gets pollinated.To test their theory, Carcache and Bloom play bee. It&#8217;s a painstaking, difficult task that they split between them. Bloom uses tweezers to remove a plant&#8217;s male parts, and back at the lab he uses a mechanical device to shake out the pollen. It takes several hours each night to produce less than a teaspoon full of microscopic pollen grains.Then Carcache finishes the job, belly-first on the ground and trying not to crush any of the plants they have come to study. Wearing a net over his head and nitrile gloves to protect him from swarming mosquitoes, he takes a paintbrush to dip grains of pollen on just the right female parts of neighbouring heather blossoms.By doing the bees&#8217; job, Carcache and Bloom hope to figure out whether the plants around the parasite are pollinated more than those further away. If so, there&#8217;s a fair trade taking place, rather than one plant simply taking advantage of others.Amid the stresses of the Arctic, scientists are rethinking the idea that all life is a cutthroat competition with winners and losers. It might be more about mutualism, with plant species cooperating so that everybody survives, like the lousewort and its neighbours, Francis says.\u201cIt would be wonderful if humans were the same way,\u201d Francis says.<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.euronews.com\/2026\/08\/26\/mini-jungle-alaska-is-getting-greener-as-the-climate-warms-with-cascading-effects&#8221;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/88\/93\/98\/1200x675_cmsv2_e700c7ab-56f4-58c5-a28a-64e2351e5101-9889398.jpg&#8221;] Health news French flight attendant&#8217;s cancer recognised as occupational disease Europe News Wolf sightings rise in Italy after suspected attacks Travel News Boutique heritage hotel set to open in the heart of Ghent Nepal Nepal floods kill eight at China border, cause casualties in Tibet Health news French flight attendant&#8217;s cancer recognised [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[90],"tags":[226,36],"class_list":["post-2112678","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-international","tag-crawlmanager","tag-euronews-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2112678","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2112678"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2112678\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2112678"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2112678"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2112678"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}