Polar bears might be endangered because global warming is melting their homes on arctic ice shelves, but one species is thriving: poison ivy.
A growing body of research shows that in controlled experiments, poison ivy goes crazy in an atmosphere rich in carbon dioxide. Many plants grow better when they get extra carbon dioxide, but researchers were surprised to learn how well poison ivy did.
"It isn't that other plants can't grow as well, it's just that poison ivy grows so much more," said Lewis H. Ziska, a plant physiologist who specializes in crop systems and global change for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service in Beltsville. One theory is that poison ivy, and vines in general, don't have to invest as much of their carbon (obtained from carbon dioxide) in trunks and branches as trees do.
More research, of course, is required.
And that just scratches the surface. Isn't it just our luck that among its leafy green counterparts, poison ivy would be the class overachiever? |