Nature's fortress: How cacti keep water in and predators out - Lucas C. Majure
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TEDEd Animation
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If you were a jackrabbit in the desert, you’d be glad to stumble across a cactus: the flesh of these plants is a water source for many animals. Known for their spines and succulent stems, cacti of all shapes and sizes have evolved to not just survive, but thrive, in some of the harshest desert climates on Earth. So how do they do it? Lucas C. Majure shares the prickly plant’s unique adaptations.
Cacti open their stomata at night, which allows them to uptake carbon dioxide and release the products of photosynthesis, oxygen and water. How does opening the stomata at night dramatically increase water use efficiency (and decrease water loss) for a cactus growing in a hot, dry environment?
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Meet The Creators
- Educator Lucas C. Majure
- Director Joseph Clark, Oh Studio
- Narrator Addison Anderson
- Composer Salil Bhayani, cAMP Studio
- Sound Designer Amanda P.H. Bennett, cAMP Studio
- Director of Production Gerta Xhelo
- Editorial Director Alex Rosenthal
- Producer Bethany Cutmore-Scott
- Editorial Producer Elizabeth Cox
- Content Associate Abdallah Ewis
- Script Editor Emma Bryce
