What's Not To Like? Scientists Discover A New Species Of Sundew On Facebook

A new species of carnivorous sundew, Drosera magnifica, which scientists discovered while surfing Facebook. Photo by Fernando Rivadavia "It was just another normal day on Facebook," claims Paulo Gonella, a PhD student at the Universidade de São Paulo in Brazil. "I was scrolling down my newsfeed when I came across a post by a friend. He was sharing a photo originally posted by Reginaldo Vasconcelos, a plant enthusiast from Governador Valadares, showing some plants in their natural habitat." But as Paulo looked at the low-resolution image, some of the plants jumped out at him. They looked like sundews — in the genus Drosera — but unlike any of the thirty species that are found in Brazil. "The plants in the photo looked much larger and had very distinctive leaf and flower characteristics when compared to all the other Drosera I know," Paulo recalls. "I immediately showed this photo to Fernando Rivadavia, who also studies this group of plants, and he was astonished as well." Though they weren't sure, Paulo and Fernando had just done something no one else had ever done: discovered a new species of plant on Facebook.