Wildflower Survives Historic Megadrought Through Rapid Evolution

Scientists document first observed case of evolutionary rescue in the wild

Mar. 12, 2026 at 9:49pm

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During California's worst drought in over a millennium, some populations of scarlet monkeyflowers defied the odds and survived the ordeal by relying on a type of rapid genetic evolution - the first time such a phenomenon has been documented in the wild. Researchers spent eight years studying 55 populations of the wildflower, tracking its numbers and sequencing its genome to reveal the genetic shifts that allowed it to recover from declines of up to 90% and avoid extinction.

Why it matters

This study provides rigorous evidence that evolutionary rescue - the process by which a species is able to recover from the threat of extinction through rapid genetic adaptation - can happen in the wild. It offers hope that some plants and animals may be able to evolve quickly enough to survive the increasingly extreme droughts predicted due to climate change, but also highlights the importance of preserving genetic diversity to enable such adaptations.

The details

The researchers studied 55 populations of the scarlet monkeyflower, a bright red wildflower that thrives in wet areas. During the 2012-2015 drought that killed over 100 million trees in California, individual monkeyflower populations declined by up to 90% compared to their peak sizes. However, the plants were able to rebound within 2-3 years by developing genetic mutations that allowed them to grow more slowly and "bunker down" to survive the drought. These drought-resistant traits were then passed on through the plants' seeds.

  • The historic drought in California occurred between 2012 and 2015.
  • The researchers studied the monkeyflower populations over an 8-year period.

The players

Daniel Anstett

An assistant professor at the School of Integrative Plant Science of Cornell University and first author of the study.

Mimulus cardinalis

The scientific name for the scarlet monkeyflower, a bright red wildflower that thrives in wet areas.

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What they’re saying

“We were able to show that these populations across the range in California were declining due to this extreme drought, and we found evidence of a rapid evolution across the genome. And then we were able to relate a metric of this evolution to the ability of these populations to recover and to not go extinct.”

— Daniel Anstett, Assistant Professor, Cornell University (Science)

“Evolutionary rescue occurs when the few individuals that are left have the right genetic makeup to do better than the ones that died, so they do well or thrive within these new conditions, so the population inches back from extinction.”

— Daniel Anstett, Assistant Professor, Cornell University (Science)

What’s next

The next step in the study is to see whether the genetic mutations that allowed the monkeyflowers to survive the megadrought will continue to be beneficial or hinder the plants if the drought stops.

The takeaway

This study provides the first rigorous evidence that evolutionary rescue - the process by which a species can recover from the threat of extinction through rapid genetic adaptation - can happen in the wild. It offers hope that some plants and animals may be able to evolve quickly enough to survive the increasingly extreme droughts predicted due to climate change, but also highlights the importance of preserving genetic diversity to enable such adaptations.