Page 8 - North Haven Magazine Issue 25 Autumn 2022
P. 8
by Sally Brockett
enerally, we think of carnivores The Venus flytrap is probably
Gas flesh-eating animals, such the most well-known of the car-
as lions, weasels, wolves, seals, etc. nivorous plants. It is often sold in
However, it may surprise you to garden centers and florist shops as
know there are quite a few carniv- a house plant and is featured in sci-
orous plants! Yes, some plants have ence fiction movies in exaggerated
evolved to capture insects and other forms. This plant functions as a true
small creatures to survive in nutri- trap with mechanisms that actively
ent deficient soils. Normally, plants move. Trigger hairs line the inside of
draw nutrients from the soil to get the leaf and cause the trap to spring
their energy, but when the soil is shut, capturing the victim within
deficient, the plants adapted so they the cage formed by the “teeth” lining
can capture bugs and other crea- the edge of the jaws. Why would an
tures to add protein for energy. The Venus flytrap with its victim. insect venture into this death trap?
soil-deficient environments are typ- It is lured in by the sweet nectar se-
ically bogs, heaths and swamps. creted in the leaf structure. Once
within the leaf structure, the insect
What is a Carnivorous plant? begins feeding on the nectar and
They are predatory flowering plants its movements stimulate the trigger
that kill prey for nutrition. These hairs. But the hairs need to be stim-
plants have a mechanism to facili- ulated twice in succession for the
tate digestion of the prey so the plant trap to be sprung. This assures that
can get significant benefit from the the prey is real. Once the jaws have
nutrients. The plant leaves are spe- snapped shut, digestion begins, and
cialized for trapping and may lure the Venus flytrap has a meal.
their prey with bright colors, sweet
nectar, and guide hairs. Although Pitcher plants may be found in
most carnivorous plants can sur- many countries including parts of
vive without consuming prey, they the U.S. Unlike other carnivorous
will reproduce and flourish with the Some tropical pitcher plants plants, pitcher plants are passive
special nutrients from prey. can trap small mammals and birds. trappers. As the name implies, the
plants have developed their leaf
To be considered a true carnivore, structure to form a shape that re-
the plant must obtain important nu- sembles a pitcher. The leaves are
trition from its victim. Many types lined with downward-facing hairs
of plants have some features of car- to keep the unsuspecting insects
nivorous plants which makes it dif- from escaping as they crawl down
ficult to determine if they are true to the bottom of the pitcher. The
carnivores. These plants are consid- pitchers collect water, so the ven-
ered murderous plants if they kill turesome insect becomes trapped
non-plants in an obvious way but do and drowns.
not derive significant nutrition from
the deceased. There are many species of pitcher
plants, with pitchers ranging in size
Let’s look at what carnivorous plants from one inch to nearly eight inch-
can be found in these bogs, heaths, es. However, Raffles’ Pitcher plant,
and swamps around the world. Closeup of Sundew hair-like tentacles. which grows near the Indian Ocean,
8 North Haven Magazine - Autumn Issue 2022
