How did plants evolve to attract animals?

Plants use a hugely diverse range of techniques to attract pollinators, using their appearance, their taste and their smell to help ensure their survival. CrowdScience listener Alice in the UK wants to know how they have evolved to do this.

The Philippines is one of only 18 countries in the world classed as ‘mega-biodiverse’ - a place where a huge number of plants have evolved in incredible ways to attract animals and insects, so it’s the perfect place to investigate Alice’s question.

Presenter Anand Jagatia sets off on a field trip to Mount Makiling in search of answers, joining Senior Botanical Propagator at the University of Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum, Lewis Barrett, and scientists from the University of the Philippines Los Baños. Together they trek into the forest in search of the incredibly rare Rafflesia flower. It’s a parasitic plant that only blooms for a few days each year – but will they find it?

Anand also visits the University of the Philippines Laguna Quezon Land Grant, a huge site containing more than 5,500 hectares of protected forest land. Professor Pastor Malabrigo Jr guides him around the site’s Conservation Gardens, where the fascinating plantlife will help us come up with an answer.