Study Shows Infrared Radiation From Plants Serves as Invitation to Pollinating Insects
Harvard researchers, including Curator of Lepidoptera Naomi Pierce, have uncovered evidence that some of the planet’s oldest seed plants use heat, rather than color or scent alone, to communicate with their pollinators — a discovery that reshapes scientists’ understanding of how early plant–animal relationships evolved.
Nicholas Bellono (from left), Wendy Valencia-Montoya, and Naomi Pierce.
Veasey Conway/Harvard Staff Photographer
In a new study published as a cover story in Science, the team led by MCZ alum Wendy Valencia-Montoya (PhD '25) reports that cycads, an ancient lineage of seed plants dating back roughly 275 million years, actively heat their reproductive cones to attract beetle pollinators. The beetles, in turn, have evolved specialized infrared-sensitive organs that allow them to detect these thermal signals and shuttle pollen between male and female plants.
The work was funded in part by an MCZ Putnam Expedition Grant awarded to Valencia-Montoya.
Valencia-Montoya WA, Liénard MA, Rosser N, Calonje M, Salzman S, Tsai C-C, Yu N, Carlson JR, Cogni R, Pierce NE, Bellono NW (2025) Infrared radiation is an ancient pollination signal. Science 390:1164-1170 DOI:10.1126/science.adz1728