Ancient pollen may be a key to protecting nature in the future

Every few years, a captivating event takes place in Danish forests: A huge blooming of trees like oak and beech occurs simultaneously, a sort of large-scale production of flowers. This phenomenon, known as ‘mass flowering’, is a critical reproductive strategy for various plant species, from northern regions to the tropics.

“Mass flowering is more than just a fascinating natural phenomenon – it is a vital process that drives forest regeneration. Forests play a key role in absorbing carbon, regulating the water cycle, and purifying air. If mass flowering falters, it could disrupt entire forest ecosystems, with cascading effects on everything from pollinators to human livelihoods,” Assistant Professor Ana Prohaska from Globe Institute explains.

Now, the Villum Foundation funds a new research project aiming to understand how climate change impacts mass flowering. The project, ‘MASS-FLOW,’ is headed by Ana Prohaska and supported with DKK 7 million as a part of the foundation’s Villum Young Investigator programme.

“By using fossil pollen and its DNA as a ‘time machine,’ we aim to uncover, for the first time, how adaptable mass flowering has been to past climatic changes and use this knowledge to predict the reproductive dynamics of key tree species like beech and oak on our warming planet,” Ana Prohaska says.

The hope is that knowledge gained from the project can help address the growing number of issues related to climate change, notably the dramatic impact of rising temperatures and drought on the world’s forests and the vital ecosystem services they provide to people.

“By offering a way to better predict these potential changes, the project seeks to provide knowledge that can guide conservation strategies, sustainable forestry practices, and climate mitigation policies.”

Understanding and protecting nature

Originally, Ana Prohaska’s inspiration for the project came from her work on Southeast Asia’s rainforests, where she first encountered mass flowering.

“Realising that such an important reproductive strategy could be at risk due to climate change was both scientifically compelling and deeply concerning. That, combined with the realisation that there is a huge untapped potential in using fossil pollen and its DNA to track ancient plant reproduction, sparked the idea for MASS-FLOW,” she says.

The Villum Young Investigator grant will go towards building a research team, support fieldwork and conduct extensive laboratory and computational analyses.

“The grant provides me with the resources to pursue a bold research idea that I am deeply passionate about while also supporting the next generation of early-career scientists in gaining a deeper understanding of how nature works and how we can protect it. It is both a great honour and a great responsibility,” Ana Prohaska says.

Establishing a new research area

The Villum Young Investigator programme aims to kickstart independent research careers, and Ana Prohaska hopes that the project will provide a foundation for even more research.

“This project is a first step toward establishing a new research area centred on past reproductive responses in plants. It provides a fresh lens to explore the fundamental question of how plant life adapts to change and what that means for us and the extraordinary biodiversity we coexist with,” she says, adding:

“Ultimately, I hope to push the boundaries of what we can learn about ancient plant populations and translate these lessons into actionable insights for preserving biodiversity today and in the future,” she says.

See the full list of Young Investigator projects here.