Harvard scientists tell a ‘hot’ story about beetles and plant sex

Harvard scientists tell a ‘hot’ story about beetles and plant sex

Flowers are often described as visual advertisements, using bright colors and strong scents to draw in insects. Yet long before petals and pigments dominated the landscape, some plants relied on a different signal altogether: heat. New research shows that cycads, among the oldest living seed plants, warm their reproductive cones to attract beetle pollinators that can sense infrared radiation. This form of communication likely shaped one of the e…