New metal-eating plant found in the Philippines

May 31 NDTV

Scientists have discovered a new plant species in the Philippines with an unusual lifestyle - it eats nickel for a living. The plant can accumulate up to 18,000 ppm (parts per million) of the metal in its leaves without itself being poisoned.

Such an amount is a hundred to a thousand times higher than in most other plants. The new species, discovered by scientists from the University of the Philippines, Los Banos, is called Rinorea niccolifera, reflecting its ability to absorb nickel in very high amounts. Nickel hyperaccumulation is a rare phenomenon with only about 0.5-1 per cent of plant species native to nickel-rich soils having been recorded to exhibit the ability, researchers said.