The seeds of dandelions are efficiently dispersed on the wind thanks to tiny discs of radiating threads that act as parachutes.
Image: Kim Hansen / Wikimedia Commons /
Image: Wikimedia Commons /
Image: Markus Bernet / Wikimedia commons /
Dandelion clock (Taraxacum officinale)
Image: Richard Bartz / Wikimedia commons /
Macroshot of a Taraxacum sect. Ruderalia mature clock
Image: Luc Viatour / Wikimedia commons /
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) achenes.
“The dandelion provides its seeds with a slightly more complex flying apparatus, a tiny disc of radiating threads that form, in effect, a parachute. A dandelion presents these seeds to the wind hoisted on the top of a stem and arranged as a fragile elegant globe.” (Attenborough 1995:16)
