Human Selection Shrinks Himalayan Snow Lotus

Recently collected samples of the Himalayan snow lotus, Saussurea laniceps are considerably shorter than samples collected just 100 years ago. The plant is harvested as a medicine in China and Tibet, where it grows at high altitudes (around 4000 metres). Scientists studying the plant believe that human selection is resulting in the diminished stature of the plant.

It is thought that the larger plants are superior and these are harvested in bloom before setting seed for maximum potency. Saussurea laniceps is a monocarpic plant, it blooms only once in its life, so there is no chance of seed after harvest. Researchers have found that areas where the herb is most frequently harvested have the smallest plant size. Another species, S. medusa, which is not often picked, has not changed in size during the same time period.

Links:

• Natural selection gets help from humans from MSNBC


• The Case of the Shrinking Lotus from the New York Times (free registration required, 14.07.05 this story is now archived and only available for purchase)


• Saussurea from the William L. Brown Centre for Plant Genetic Resources of the Missouri Botanical Garden

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 5:09 PM on July 6, 2005