Researchers from the Australian scientific agency CSIRO have discovered that eucalyptus trees are capable of accumulating gold particles in their leaves and branches. This finding could change the approach to gold exploration.
Scientists from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) have established that certain species of eucalyptus trees literally “suck up” gold from the soil and accumulate microscopic particles of it in their leaves and branches.
The study, conducted in the Kalgoorlie region of Western Australia, showed that trees growing over deep gold deposits extract particles of the precious metal along with moisture from underground sources. As the gold travels up the trunk, it settles in the plant’s tissues. The size of the discovered particles was tiny—less than one-billionth of a meter.
The researchers explain that gold is toxic to trees, so the plants “get rid” of it by pushing the metal to the surface of their leaves or concentrating it in older branches and bark. It was this mechanism that allowed the researchers to detect gold traces in the upper parts of the eucalypts.
This discovery could revolutionize the approach to gold exploration. Geologists may be able to determine the presence of precious metal deposits by analyzing leaf samples instead of drilling into the soil. Such a biogeochemical method is cheaper, more environmentally friendly, and allows for the exploration of hard-to-reach territories.
“Essentially, the trees are acting as natural sampling devices,” notes Dr. Mel Lintern, the lead author of the study. “They draw up minerals from depths of up to 30 meters and, in doing so, indicate what is hidden beneath the surface.”
The research was published in the journal Nature Communications and was conducted with the participation of scientists from CSIRO and the Australian Synchrotron in Melbourne.
