Meadow orchids: Exploiting mycorrhizas in broad daylight

In a study in the Journal of Ecology researchers from the BayCEER Laboratory of Isotope Biogeochemistry investigate the nutritional mode of meadow orchids using stable isotope natural abundances. They find that partial mycoheterotrophy plays a far greater role in rhizoctonia‐associated orchids growing in full light conditions than previously assumed and demonstrate that partial mycoheterotrophy is a trophic continuum between the extreme endpoints of autotrophy and full mycoheterotrophy, ranging from marginal to pronounced.