Climate change could separate vanilla plants and their pollinators

Some species might be able to recruit a new pollinator, but others could be out of luck

A bee dives headfirst into a white flower on a wild vanilla plant.

A belted orchid bee (Eulaema cingulata) visits a Vanilla pompona flower. If the habitats of these two diverge due to climate change, the plant may have to recruit other pollinators — or go extinct.

Charlotte Watteyn

Vanilla plants could have a future that’s not so sweet.