during dry times, resurrection plants look dead, but are actually alive. some xerophytic plants may stop growing and go dormant, or change the allocation of the products of photosynthesis from growing new leaves to the roots. these plants evolved to be able to coordinately switch off their photosynthetic mechanism without destroying the molecules involved in photosynthesis. when water is available again, these plants would "resurrect from the dead" and resume photosynthesis, even after they had lost more than 80% of their water content. a study has found that the sugar levels in resurrection plants increase when subjected to desiccation. this may be associated with how they survive without sugar production via photosynthesis for a relatively long duration. some examples of resurrection plants include the "anastatica hierochuntica" plant or more commonly known as the "rose of jericho", as well as one of the most robust plant species in east africa, the "craterostigma pumilum".