Hidden fungus inside desert moss could rewrite 470-million-year story of how plants moved onto land

Hidden fungus inside desert moss could rewrite 470-million-year story of how plants moved onto land

Mosses are survivors. They can dry into what looks like green dust, only to spring back to life minutes after rain. They can grow on rocks, in deserts, and there's talk of using them to terraform Mars someday. According to new research, mosses have also been hiding something.

Scientists just found something weird inside moss

Mosses are survivors. They can dry into what looks like green dust, only to spring back to life minutes after rain. They can grow on rocks, in deserts, and there’s talk of using them to terraform Mars someday. According to new research, mosses have also been hiding something. UC Riverside researchers studying desert mosses have found evidence, presented in the journal New Phytologist, that these ancient plants may host fungi inside their tissues…