this post was submitted on 10 Mar 2024
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Science Memes

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[–] xkforce@lemmy.world 98 points 1 year ago (2 children)

They dont. It just happens that natural selection favored flowers that looked vaguely bird like and over time, flowers that looked more and more like a bird outcompeted the ones that looked less like one.

[–] orphiebaby@lemm.ee 44 points 1 year ago (2 children)

What's funny is how absurd this is. Most flowers don't look like birds and they're fine.

[–] Hawk@lemmy.dbzer0.com 30 points 1 year ago (3 children)

This has nothing to do with natural selection. It's just a coincidence that the buds very shortly and from a specific angle vaguely look like birds.

Most of the images shared are probably photoshopped to enhance the effect too.

[–] vzq@lemmy.blahaj.zone 35 points 1 year ago (1 children)

looks at user name

Sounds like something a BIRD would say!

[–] Hawk@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 1 year ago

Squaaawk, you got me!

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[–] Zink@pawb.social 16 points 1 year ago (4 children)

It's about tiny percents.

A bird will land on a flower.

A bird will not land on a bird.

So every one in a million time a bird mistakes a flower for a bird, that's a flower that survives.

All you have to do is wait a couple million years for the odds to turn in the bird flower's favor.

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[–] exocrinous@lemm.ee 13 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Right, but what about the mimic plant? It mimicks whatever plant is near it. And it can mimic plastic plants. https://www.vox.com/down-to-earth/2022/11/30/23473062/plant-mimicry-boquila-trifoliolata

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[–] marcos@lemmy.world 57 points 1 year ago (1 children)

"Appear to look like"...

I wonder what they look like if you manage to ignore the appearances.

[–] Big_Boss_77@lemmynsfw.com 19 points 1 year ago

My guess would be Yulan magnolia blossoms.

[–] gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works 37 points 1 year ago (3 children)
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[–] JasonDJ@lemmy.zip 36 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Animals are something plants invented to help spread their seeds around.

[–] Tylix@lemmy.world 18 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Know what's wild? For millions of years nothing around ate trees, so when a tree grew and died and fell it was permanently there because there was no rot. Which is how we got petrified forests.

[–] bananabenana@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago

From my readings, I don't think this is the case. Lignin degradation evolved rapidly with terrestrial plants. Coal and petrified wood is more due to geological events and swamps for example. Evolving ligninases is trivial for bacteria and fungi.

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[–] Neil@lemmy.ml 14 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Life in general is most likely something the universe invented to speed up entropy.

[–] systemglitch@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago

Life is a natural part of entropy for sure.

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[–] corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca 32 points 1 year ago (6 children)

"..how birds look like.."

Just one of many issues with the English here.

  • what it looks like
  • how it looks

You need to pick a lane.

[–] Squirrel@thelemmy.club 10 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I typically assume it's a non-native speaker with things like this, but I'm not sure in this case.

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[–] cinnamonTea@lemmy.ml 9 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

I'd read this with commas around 'like', rather than with a period after it: "... how birds look, like, I'm afraid" works as a sentence while "... how birds look like. I'm afraid" is both wrong, like you point out, but also sounds much more serious than the jokey tone I'd expect from a message without punctuation and capitalization

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[–] PunnyName@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Did you understand what was being communicated? Yes? Congratulations!

Because, really, that's generally all that's necessary.

[–] AngryCommieKender@lemmy.world 10 points 1 year ago
 MY PARSER BROKE
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[–] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 31 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

Why do plants know how birds look

The potatoes told them. (Potatoes have eyes)

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[–] therealjcdenton@lemmy.zip 26 points 1 year ago (1 children)

More evidence birds aren't real

[–] Zerush@lemmy.ml 24 points 1 year ago (2 children)

There are a lot of weird flowers out there

Evolution is wonderfull

[–] MaryReadsBooks@lemmy.ml 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] Zerush@lemmy.ml 4 points 1 year ago

The fruit is, but not the plant, scientific name: Tetrastigma voinieranum, common names: Chestnut Vine, Lizard Vine, Wild Grape

[–] OozingPositron@feddit.cl 8 points 1 year ago

My aunt had one of these but she watered it too much and it drowned. lmao

[–] synae@lemmy.sdf.org 20 points 1 year ago (2 children)
[–] PunnyName@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago (4 children)

I rewatched Annihilation recently. That fucking bear scene still haunts me. Great film.

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[–] potustheplant@feddit.nl 4 points 1 year ago

droning sounds intensify

[–] ChowJeeBai@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

How do you know it's not a bird trying to look like a plant? Y'know to evade predators and all...

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[–] mvirts@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago
[–] Gladaed@feddit.de 4 points 1 year ago

There are plants that cam see, so you are rightly afraid.

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