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Carnivorous Plants are plants that derive nutrients from trapping and consuming animals, typically insects and other arthropods. They have adapted to grow in places where the soil is thin or poor in nutrients. Carnivorous plants can be found on every continent except Antarctica. They inhabit a wide range of environments that range from acidic bogs to limestone cliffs to seasonal desserts to tropical jungles. Research to discover which carnivorous plants are native to your part of the world!
In order to be considered a "true carnivore" a plant must meet four criteria. It must: Attract, Trap, Digest, and Absorb animal prey. There are many plants that do some, but not all of these things, and they are considered protocarnivorous (evolving towards "true carnivory"). As more research is done the number of plants recognized as "true carnivores" will likely grow. As of now there are 18 genera of carnivorous plants which belong to 5 different orders of flowering plants. Perhaps this is the most fascinating fact about carnivorous plants. They are NOT all closely related, and their carnivorous traits evolved independently on at least 6 occasions. Furthermore, you might be surprised by which plants are more closely related than others (maybe not the ones you thought!). Some carnivorous species are monotypic; having only 1 species in the genus; true oddities. Others are endemic; found in only 1 small place on the planet.
There are 5 different trapping mechanisms found in carnivorous plants:
- Pitfall Traps prey in a rolled leaf that contains a pool of digestive enzymes or bacteria. (Darlingtonia, Cephalotus, Heliamphora, Nepenthes, Heliamphora, Brocchinia, Catopsis)
- Sticky Flypaper Traps use sticky mucilage. (Byblis, Drosera, Drosophyllum, Ibicella, Pinguicula, Triphyophyllum, Roridula)
- Bear Traps utilize rapid leaf movements. (Aldrovanda, Dionaea)
- Bladder Traps suck in prey with a bladder that generates an internal vacuum. (Utricularia)
- Corkscrew Traps force prey to move towards a digestive organ with inward-pointing hairs. (Genlisea)
These traps may be active or passive, depending on whether movement aids the capture of prey. Byblis is not known to move in response to prey, however some sundews may move dramatically! They both possess sticky flypaper traps, but one is passive while the other is active. This movement helps the plant retain as much nutrients from its prey as possible. These two different types of traps can sometimes be seen within the same genus, such as Drosera and Pinguicula.
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