Endangered Texas Rice Pollination Habits Revealed

There is a type of wild rice, likely so rare, that it only grows in a small stretch of the San Marcos River in Texas. This endangered, aquatic grass (Zizania texana) plays the sexual reproduction game poorly; its pollen can only travel about 30 inches away from a parent plant. If pollen doesn't land on a receptive female flower within that distance, no seeds will be produced. No seeds means no new plants to replenish a population that faces other survival threats.

"It would be great to introduce more of these plants into the San Marcos River so that we can build up its population, said Flo Oxley, conservation director at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at The University of Texas at Austin, and lead author of the study. Texas wild-rice is a food source and home for endangered fish called fountain darters, and is a cousin to several rice species cultivated for food purposes.