Endangered Male Plant Seeks Female Partner with AI Assistance
Artificial intelligence (AI) is being utilized in a groundbreaking effort to find a female partner for E. woodii, an endangered male plant dubbed the ‘world’s loneliest plant.’
Ancient lineage at risk
E. woodii is part of the cycads, the oldest seed-bearing plants on Earth, predating even the dinosaurs. This species is extinct in the wild, with the last known specimen discovered in Ngoye Forest, South Africa. Fortunately, continued propagation in botanical gardens has prevented its total extinction. Scientists are now striving to increase the population through natural reproduction, but have yet to find a female plant.
Searching the Ngoye forest
Researchers are combing through the Ngoye Forest, an area that has never been fully explored. Despite the use of a drone equipped with an advanced multispectral camera, the task is daunting. A recent survey of just 195 acres produced 15,780 images, highlighting the vast amount of data to be processed.
AI to the rescue
To manage this data, the team is employing AI. “We are using an image recognition algorithm to identify plants by their shape,” explained Dr. Laura Cinti, who leads the project. “We have generated images of plants in various ecological settings to train the model to recognize them.”
While a female plant has not yet been found, less than two percent of the forest has been searched. Researchers are also exploring the possibility of inducing a sex change in a male plant. “There have been reports of sex changes in other cycad species due to environmental changes, so we are hopeful we can induce a sex change in E. woodii as well,” said Dr. Cinti.
“I was very inspired by the story of E. woodii. It mirrors a classic tale of unrequited love,” Dr. Cinti reflected. “I’m confident there is a female out there somewhere. It would be wonderful to bring this plant, so close to extinction, back through natural reproduction.”