Insectivorous plants at home. An amazing creation of nature - carnivorous plants (13 photos)

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✪ PLANTS that EAT ANIMALS!!!

✪ Predator plants

✪ Plants predators

✪ Predatory plants. Venus flytrap

✪ Predatory plants. predatory flowers

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Most plants get their food from the soil they grow on. But what about plants living in areas with insufficient nutrients ? Evolution solved this problem and presented the world with amazing creatures - plants that turned their stems and leaves into deadly traps. They have learned to dissolve and assimilate the bodies of their victims, and most importantly, they have developed unique ways to lure prey. Predators in our garden, which have become a unique link in the food chain! These "green predators" live, as a rule, in places with a lack of nitrogen and mineral salts in the soil, and animal food is an excellent source of both. Meat-eating plants can eat in the same way as their non-carnivorous counterparts, but this makes them lethargic and shortens their life cycle. To date, more than six hundred species of carnivorous plants are known, divided into three groups: "insectivorous", whose prey is mainly insects; "water" - fishing for catching micro-crustaceans; and the eat-it-your-catch group, plants that have traps large enough to catch small animals. After a successful hunt, the caught game is digested by some kind of "gastric juice" that is produced by the special glands of the plant, or the caught creature dies and rots, and the plant absorbs the decomposition products. The only predatory plant, the process of catching insects that can be seen with the naked eye, is the cell plant - the Venus flytrap. Its leaves look like the mouth of an unknown monster. Each mouth is dotted with thorns-fangs, which act as lattices in the cage, when the leaf slams shut, the prey can no longer get out of it. In the case when the leaf slams shut empty, or something inedible gets into it, it will open itself within half an hour. If an insect is caught, the trap remains closed for several weeks until the food is completely absorbed. This "green monster" grows in a humid temperate climate on the Atlantic coast of the United States (Florida, North and South Carolina and New Jersey). The representative of insectivorous plants in Europe and the CIS countries is Rosyanka. Most often, it can be found in central Russia, growing in swampy areas, in places poor in useful minerals - the so-called "acidic soils". In the summer, a blooming sundew can be recognized by small white flowers growing on a long stem-peduncle. The very same sundew, a rather inconspicuous marsh insectivorous grass with leaves lying on the ground, dotted with hairs. The liquid secreted by the hairs is very similar to dew, but in reality it is a glue that is deadly to insects, as well as an enzyme for digesting prey. The victim, attracted by the smell of this "pseudo-dew", sits on a leaf and sticks to it. The hairs press the unfortunate creature to the surface of the leaf, the enzyme begins the process of dissolving food, and the leaf itself, meanwhile, curls up, depriving the captive of the last chance of salvation. The remains, which the sundew has not digested, fall to the ground, after which the leaves take on their usual form, the hairs are covered with sticky “dew” beads and a new hunt begins. Some especially large species of sundew can catch even careless frogs and small birds. About 130 varieties of this plant are known to science. In conditions similar to the habitat of the sundew, you can meet another "green predator" - the sourdough. It looks like a rosette of large leaves tapering at the end, covered with a shiny sticky fat-like mass. During the flowering period, a stem with a purple flower grows from the center of the rosette. The principle of hunting and feeding zhiryanka strongly resembles sundew. Insects, attracted by the smell of "fat", stick to the leaf, which is wrapped inward, and the digestive secretions break down the prey. The resulting minerals and amino acids are absorbed by the plant, then the leaf unfolds and waits for the next batch of "guests". Darlingtonia also loves swampy terrain, and outwardly resembles a cobra, ready to throw. It is for its jugs, shaped like a snake's hood, that Darlingtonia received the nickname "Cobra plant". This is a truly insidious plant: it not only lures insects into its jug with a sweet aroma, but also has numerous false "exits" on its walls, pointing down and not allowing the victim to get out. But pemphigus is a predator plant whose habitat is stagnant water. Pemphigus is deprived of the usual roots for plants, which is why it preys on insects and small crustaceans. Trapping "bubbles" are located along with the leaves under water, only its flowers float on the surface. The "bubbles" have a certain "entrance", which opens as soon as an insect is nearby. The signal to open the "bubble" comes from the probe hairs located near the "entrance". When an insect catches a hair, the “bubble” opens and draws the prey inward along with water. Then the digestion of food begins. The habitat of another carnivorous plant called NepEntes or Pitcher, is tropical forests. It grows mainly as a liana, but among the 80 varieties of this plant there are also shrubs. It got its name "jug" for the special shape of the leaves, reminiscent of a jug, which helps it to collect rain water. These "jugs" are also large enough to catch frogs, rodents and small birds. However, insects remain the main prey of Nepenthes. On the inner part of the walls of the pitcher there are glands that produce nectar and wax. Nectar lures prey, and smooth wax does not allow to get out and the insect, falling into the water at the bottom of the jug, drowns. The next predatory plant is the handsome Byblis. The range of this low shrub is Northern Australia and southern New Guinea, as well as small areas in Western Australia. Byblis branches are dotted with narrow long leaves, on the surface of which there are bristles and glands that secrete a strong adhesive substance and a digestive enzyme. Both insects and small animals fall into such a trap. Australian Aborigines once believed that the Byblis was even capable of catching and digesting a human. But this did not stop them from using biblis leaves as a source of glue. And this bright representative of insectivorous plants lives in swamps and belongs to the Sarraceniaceae family. Sarracenia has bright flowers and bright green leaves dotted with crimson capillary lines. Its leaves resemble envelopes exuding sweet juice. Once in such a trap, the insect is doomed. And the scenario with digestion and assimilation is still the same. And although the process of hunting Sarracenia is not as spectacular as, for example, hunting a Venus flytrap, it is nevertheless quite interesting to watch a flower. Today, these miracle plants can be purchased in many flower shops, including through the Internet. The buyer has a very wide choice. So, if you have a desire to decorate your house and at the same time clean it from annoying insects, these “green predators” can help you with this.

Historical information and study

carnivorous plants became known in the 18th century. The very first accurate botanical description of the Venus flytrap ( Dionaea muscipula) was made by the English naturalist John Ellis in a letter to Carl Linnaeus in 1769. In the letter, Ellis suggested for the first time that the insects he caught were food for plants.

At the beginning of the 19th century, a number of new genera and species belonging to this group of plants were described. So, Kortals in 1835 described the phenomenon of insectivorousness in plants of the genus Nepenthes ( Nepenthes) .

Soon there were works devoted to a deep study of the characteristics of such plants. In 1861, Auger de Lassu described the sensitivity to touch and movement of the leaves of plants of the genus Aldrovand ( Aldrovanda). In 1868 an American scientist William Canby first pointed out the digestive properties of the juice secreted by the glands on the leaves of the Venus flytrap.

The next step in the study of insectivorous plants was research work Charles Darwin, started with observations of sundews in 1860. At the same time, Darwin set up a series of laboratory experiments that grew into research. He studied the "tastes" of plants and compiled a "menu". Darwin was attracted by the ability of plants to digest food, their grasping movements, high sensitivity to touch - that is, properties similar to those of animals. Subsequently, these experiments became a serious scientific work, which included many unique observations and bold, but reasonable conclusions.

Darwin was so captivated by this work that in a letter to Lyell he wrote:

Darwin for a long time hesitated to publish the results of his research. Only 15 years later, when they were supplemented by other researchers, he published the book "Insectivorous Plants" (). The second edition of Insectivorous Plants, with large additions written by his son, appeared after Darwin's death in 1888.

The work of Charles Darwin marked a turning point in the study of carnivorous plants. As K. Goebel writes (1893),

<…>hardly any other department of botany in modern times attracted the attention of a wider circle than the so-called insectivorous plants. The reason for this was in particular the extensive work of Darwin, which gave impetus to the appearance of numerous other works.

However, this work did not immediately find recognition among scientists of its time and was subjected to severe criticism, in most cases because of their fundamental differences with Darwin's new evolutionary theory. Director of the St. Petersburg Botanical Garden E. Regel (1879) expressed the opinion that Darwin's statement about the existence of insectivorous plants in nature belongs to the number of theories,

over which every sane botanist and natural scientist would simply laugh, if it did not come from the famous Darwin. We hope that the cold mind (der kuhle Verstand) and the thorough observation of our German investigators will soon throw this theory, like the theories of primary genesis, parthenogenesis, alternation of generations, etc., into a box of scientific rubbish, which the former followers of such theories themselves least of all ever want to open.

However, until now, Darwin's fundamental work is the largest contribution to the study of carnivorous plants.

Evolution

Template:Biophoto Data on the evolution of insectivorous plants is extremely scarce due to the small number of fossil remains of the latter. Fossils, most of which are represented by seeds or pollen, have not been found enough. Most representatives of insectivores, being herbaceous plants, lack dense structures such as bark or wood, and the trapping formations themselves are probably not preserved as fossils.

Botanical description

Insectivores are predominantly perennial herbaceous plants, but subshrubs and small shrubs are also found.

The largest known insectivorous plant is the giant biblis ( Byblis gigantea), a small (up to half a meter) shrub from the Biblis family, growing in Australia. Not only insects come across in it, but also snails and even frogs and lizards. Nepenthes - tropical lianas with a lignified stem, grow up to 4 m in length (winged Nepenthes). There are species of Nepenthes that attract small mammals with nectar and use their excrement as fertilizer.

They live mainly in swampy meadows and swamps, in the water of fresh water reservoirs. Rosolist ( Drosophyllum), a shrub up to 30 cm high, growing on dry sands in North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula. Local farmers have long used this plant instead of sticky fly paper, hanging it inside their houses.

Animals are used as additional source phosphorus, potassium and other elements. Insects are caught using modified leaves - trapping organs. Attract insects by color, smell or sweet secretions. On the surface of the leaves there are glands that secrete digestive enzymes: pepsin and organic acids (formic, benzoic and others), which digest the caught prey, breaking down animal proteins. The products formed as a result of such extracellular digestion, mainly amino acids, are absorbed and assimilated.

actively catching - with actively moving organs for catching insects (dew, flycatcher);
passively catching;
- with mucous and sticky secretions on the leaves, catching insects (rosolist, zhiryanka);
- with traps - jugs, bubbles and the like (pemphigus, nepenthes, genlisia, sarracenia).

Trap types

Plants use five main types of prey traps:

trapping leaves in the form of pitchers;
leaves that close in the form of traps;
sticky traps;
suction traps;
crab claw trap.

The type of trap does not depend on whether the plant belongs to a particular family.

Loss of predation

Template:Biophoto Many plant species can be classified as protoinsectivores or parainsectivores. Plants that can extract the nutrients they need from insects adhering to their surface are called protoinsectivores; however, unlike insectivorous plants, they lack special trapping devices and do not have an attractive smell and secretory glands. Protoinsectivorousness is common for plants with glandular pubescence (yellow ibicella, some types of cinquefoil, geraniums) and sticky stems (tar). Parainsectivorous plants have partially lost the ability to catch and digest small animals and, in the course of evolution, have adapted to use other sources of nutrients. One of these plants is Nepenthes pitcher ( Nepenthes ampullaria), which, along with attracting, catching and digesting arthropods, has the ability to obtain nutrients from the falling leaves of other plants that fall into its trapping "jug". Another example is Nepenthes Low ( Nepenthes lowii). Preliminary studies have shown that this species is presumably adapted to "catching" bird droppings, feeding on its nectar and sweet secretions. Nepenthes Attenborough ( Nepenthes attenboroughii), native to the Philippines, synthesizes sweet nectar on the lid of a jar. Small animals love to feast on this nectar - tupai, which use these jugs as a toilet. From the animal's feces, the insectivorous plant receives nitrogen and phosphorus - and produces a new portion of attracting nectar, completing the cycle.

Pemphigus purpurea ( Utricularia purpurea) has partially lost the ability to catch prey. At the same time, she developed a mutualistic relationship, providing her bubbles for algae and zooplankton to inhabit.

cultivation

Template: Biophoto Though different kinds carnivorous plants are differently demanding on lighting, air humidity and soil, they are united by some common features.

Watering

Most carnivorous plants require rain or other specially prepared demineralized water with a slightly acidic, almost neutral environment (about 6.5).

Regular tap or drinking water contains mineral salts (in particular, calcium salts), which quickly accumulate in tissues and can destroy the plant. This is because most carnivorous plants grow in acidic, nutrient-poor soils and are therefore extremely sensitive to excess calcium and excessive amounts of nutrients. Since most of these plants grow in swampy areas, almost all of them are moisture-loving and do not tolerate drought. Although there are exceptions, for example: tuberous sundews, which need a dry (summer) dormant period, and the Lusitanian dewberry ( Drosophyllum lusitanicum) growing in dry conditions.

"Feeding"

Outdoor grown plants are able to provide for themselves necessary quantity insects. Insects can be fed to plants by hand to supplement their diet. However, carnivorous plants are usually unable to digest large quantities of food, which can rot in the trap, which in turn can lead to the death of the plant. Small carnivores, such as some species of ants and spiders, dive directly into the digestive juice and eat the prey caught by the plant, thereby making it easier for the plant to digest.

A carnivorous plant that does not catch insects rarely dies, although its growth may be retarded. In general, these plants are best left to fend for themselves. After watering tap water, the most common cause of the death of the Venus flytrap is the mechanical impact on the traps in order to examine them up close and “feed” them, for example, with cheese or other products.

illumination

Most carnivorous plants require bright light, and most will look better under these conditions, as this encourages them to synthesize red and purple pigments called anthocyanins. For Nepenthes and Pinguicula absolute UV is the best condition, however for most other species direct sunlight is acceptable.

Humidity

Carnivorous plants mainly grow in swamps, and therefore require high humidity air. On a small scale, this can be achieved by placing the plant pot on a wide tray of pebbles that are constantly moistened. Small species of Nepenthes grow well in large terrariums.

Temperature

Many carnivorous plants come from cold regions with temperate climate and can be grown outdoors, in a swamp, garden all year round. Majority Sarracenia can tolerate temperatures below freezing, despite this, most species are native to the southeastern United States. Kinds Drosera and Pinguicula can also tolerate low temperatures. Nepenthes are species that are tropical, requiring a temperature rise of +20 to +30 °C for flowering. Template: Biophoto Many Sarracenia hybrids developed are very unpretentious, in particular, they are quite undemanding to the content of nutrients in the soil. Most value 3:1 peat mix Sphagnum to sand (coconut is an acceptable and more environmentally friendly substitute for peat). Nepenthes orchids will grow in compost or pure sphagnum moss.

Pests

Beginner gardeners can recommend species originating from cool temperate climate conditions, in greenhouse conditions (minimum 5 ° C in winter time, maximum +25 ° C in summer) such plants will feel good in wide trays with rain or acidified water in summer period, and under conditions humid air in winter.

The Venus flytrap can live in these conditions, but it is actually quite difficult to grow: despite good care, it is often subject to gray mold infestation in winter, even if it is well ventilated.

Some of the lowland Nepenthes ( Nepenthes) grow very quickly in relatively constant warm and humid conditions.

Insectivorous plants as an artistic image

Template:Biophoto Insectivorous plants have always attracted interest, which is reflected in works of art, films, commercials, computer games, where they were often credited with the ability to reach enormous sizes and other unusual properties. One of the first rumors, later debunked, about

Did you know that there are several hundred carnivorous plants in the world? No, they are not as scary as in the American movie Little Shop of Horrors. Such flowers feed on insects, tadpoles and even frogs and rats. Interestingly, some predatory plants have long established themselves as useful pets. They claim that home flower, which eats insects, helps fight pests such as mosquitoes, flies, and spiders.

Why did plants switch to animal food?

An insect-eating plant has evolved its diet not from a good life. All species of these carnivores grow on soils with a lack of nitrogen and other nutrients. It is very difficult for them to survive on sandy soils or peat, so some species have adapted to life due to the ability to absorb animal protein. It is animal food that is able to completely renew the reserves of nitrogen and minerals.

Plants use various traps to catch prey. In addition, all plant predators are distinguished by their bright color and attractive smell, which are associated by insects with nectar-bearing flowers. But do not forget that animal food is only "vitamins" for plants, and the main food for them is photosynthesis.

Varieties of carnivorous plants

To date, scientists have described about 500 species of carnivorous plants that belong to 19 families. It can be concluded that the evolutionary development of these groups of organisms occurred in parallel and independently.

The most famous plants that eat insects are:

sarracenia;
genlisea;
darlingtonia;
pemphigus;
zhiryanka;
sundew;
biblis;
aldrovanda vesicular;
Venus flytrap.

An interesting fact: flycatchers have the Latin name muscipula, which in translation into Russian does not mean “flycatcher”, but “mousetrap”.

The prevalence of entomophagous plants

Carnivorous plants are not only exotic representatives of the biosphere. They are found everywhere - from the equator to the Arctic. Most often they can be found in damp places, especially in swamps. Most of the species are recorded in the southwestern part of Australia. Some species are eurybionts and grow in many biocenoses. The range of other species is more limited - for example, the Venus flytrap is found naturally only in South and North Carolina.

What species grow in Russia

In Russia, there are 13 species of carnivorous plants from 4 genera. The genus Rosyanka is represented by two species: common sundew and English sundew. They grow mainly in sphagnum bogs. Aldrovanda vesicularis found both in the European part of the Russian Federation and in the Far East and the Caucasus.

The genus Pemphigus in Russia is represented by four species, the most common of which is Pemphigus vulgaris. These are aquatic plants that differ in their growth rate. They are found in shallow waters throughout Russia (with the exception of the Far North). Also in our area you can meet representatives of the Zhiryanka genus, which grow in swamps, banks of streams, and some - on trees and mosses.

Diet of carnivorous flowers

Most carnivorous plants (sunflowers, sarracenia, nepenthes) feed on insects. The diet of aquatic representatives, such as aldrovands or pemphigus, is predominantly small crustaceans. There are also species that prey on larger prey: fish fry, newts, toads and reptiles. One of the largest representatives of predators, Nepenthes Rafflez and Nepenthes Raja feed not only on insects, but also on mammals such as mice and rats.

Types of Trapping Organs

Predators catch their prey with the help of traps, which, depending on the species, are of several types:

pitcher leaves. This design has a lid, and inside it is filled with water (nepentes, darlingtonia);
trap leaves. The modified leaf consists of two flaps with teeth on the edges. When the insect is inside, the valves close (Venus flytrap);
sticky leaves. On the leaf plates there are special hairs that secrete a sticky secret that attracts insects (dew, oilseed);
suction traps. Water, together with the victim under pressure, is sucked into a special vial (pemphigus);
crab claw traps. Victims easily fall into them, but cannot get out because of the hairs growing forward in a spiral (genlisey).

At home, you can keep the following types of carnivorous plants:

venus flytrap;
all types of sundews;
tropical butterworts;
sarracenia;
dwarf nepenthes.

In Russia, the most popular indoor predator is the Venus flytrap. A flower pot should be kept on a well-lit windowsill or on a table with artificial lighting. The air temperature in the room should be between 18–25 °C in summer and 10–13 °C in winter. Since the flycatcher - moisture-loving plant, the soil in the pot should be constantly moistened. Water the plant with clean rain or melt water.

Flies are annoying creatures and not amenable to any tricks. Constant use chemical substances for the destruction of these insects is not very useful for humans and harms environment. Sometimes a plant that eats flies can be used as a pest control. These species of flowering plants developed independently of each other, adapting to feed on living organisms due to the scarcity of soils in their places of growth. Basically, these are swampy lowlands, where there are almost no trace elements in the soil.

Types of flycatchers

In total, there are about 630 species of carnivorous plants in the world, belonging to 19 genera. In Russia, there are 18 species from 2 families: Rosyankov and Puzyrchatkov.

Vesicular predators are all, but they are of no practical interest. It is very difficult to breed them at home, as they are aquatic plants devoid of roots. They stay on the surface of the water due to the large number of trapping bubbles located in the leaves. An insect, getting inside the bubble, can no longer get out.

Rosyankovye are much more interesting. These are terrestrial plants that, if desired, can be bred at home. The name of the plants of the Rosyankov family comes from their method of catching insects.

On a note!
A large sundew is able to catch not only, but even a dragonfly.

What do sundews look like

it perennials with a tuberous thickened root. There are sundews on almost all types of soils:

sandstones;
swamps;
in the mountains.

The flowers of these plants are inconspicuous, and there are long thin hairs on the leaves. At the tips of the hairs, small droplets of a sweet liquid, similar to fallen dew, stand out. Hence the common name "dew".

With a sweet syrup, the plant attracts flies and male mosquitoes, which sit on the leaves to eat. As soon as a fly touches the hairs, it sticks to the leaf. The syrup is not only sweet, but also viscous. The plant begins to slowly roll the leaf around the fly. After complete folding, the leaf remains in this position until the plant has completely digested the prey.

In Russia, several types of sundews are common, including the type species.

Rosyanka rotundifolia

A perennial flower that eats flies. The type species that gave the name to the entire genus of sundews. Distributed throughout the Eurasian continent. Prefers swamps, can grow on peat bogs and damp sands.

Round-leaved sundew can safely be called a long-liver - it lives for several decades. But due to poor nutrition, sundew grows very slowly and does not grow large.

The leaves grow from a rosette and are located on the ground. On small round leaf plates there are glandular hairs 4-5 mm long. These hairs secrete droplets of a dew-like liquid.

The round-leaved sundew feeds not only on flies. When an insect touches a sensitive hair, the leaf curls up and the hairs dig into the cover of the invertebrate.

Interesting!
Eating insects occurs with the help of those very droplets of liquid that are actually a digestive enzyme.

sundew english

A perennial plant, common not only in Eurasia, but also in North America. In some regions of Russia, it is included in the Red Book.

This is another fly-eating flower. Unlike round-leaved sundew, English basis The diet consists of flying invertebrates up to dragonflies. The leaves of the English sundew are directed upwards. The length of the leaf blade is 1.5-3 cm. The width is 5 cm. The leaves are covered with red glandular hairs. When a fly is caught, a leaf of the English sundew wraps around the insect. What a flower that eats a fly in the midst of the process looks like in the photo can be seen below.

Venus flytrap

This native of the North American continent is often bred at home as an ornamental plant.

Interesting!
The Latin name of the flower muscipula is translated as "mousetrap". It is believed that this was a mistake by the botanist who described the plant. But there is no confirmation of this hypothesis. The name "Venus" is given in honor of the goddess of love.

it herbaceous plant with 4-7 leaves that grow from a rosette. The flower stem is bulbous. The length of the leaves is 4-7 cm and depends on the season. Longer leaves grow after flowering.

The leaves of the flycatcher resemble flowers. They are oval and red in color. But this is only a device for luring invertebrates.

The name "flycatcher" is also not true, as well as "mousetrap". The Venus flytrap is not a fly-catching flower. These Diptera are accidental prey, accounting for only 5% of the carnivorous plant's diet. The bulk of the diet of this plant is made up of invertebrates crawling on the ground. A third of them are ants.

Even a flycatcher leaf looks like a trap. It is almost smooth inside and has sensitive hairs around the edges. If the hairs are disturbed at least 2 times with an interval of no more than 20 seconds, the sheet will begin to close the edges.

The digestion process takes an average of 10 days. Then the leaf opens, "throws out" an empty chitinous shell and waits for the next prey. During the lifetime of one trap leaf, an average of 3 insects fall into it.

On a note!
The habitat of the Venus flytrap in its homeland is swamps. This flower can easily live on the windowsill or in the garden if it has a sufficiently moist earthen ball. Drying out is harmful for the flycatcher.

pitchers

Plants, some of whose leaves look like bright jug-shaped flowers. But even these plants cannot be said to use trap flowers. As they also act as tube leaves, at the bottom of which liquid accumulates. Flies fly to the bait and drown in it. Since it is actually a concentrated digestive enzyme.

The pitchers are painted in various bright colors, while the real flowers of the pitchers are small and inconspicuous.

Nepenthes

Inhabitant of humid tropical regions. The length of the Nepenthes, depending on their type, is 2.5-50 cm. The largest ones can catch and digest a small mammal. Or enter into a symbiosis with an animal. The large Nepenthes lowii, in addition to insects, uses the dung of the mountain tupai as a source of organic matter. And the animal regales itself with nectar.

Interesting!
For the convenience of the tupai, the entire pitcher-leaf structure is reinforced to support the extra weight.

Sarracenia

The family consists of 10 species. The fly trap is a twisted, funnel-shaped leaf growing from the root. The plant is native to North America. Sarracenia has been grown as a houseplant since pre-revolutionary Russia. It grows well in pots.

Breeders have already developed new cultivated varieties of Sarracenia that can be grown indoors. At good care you can achieve flowering sarracenia.

Stapelia

A plant that is mistakenly considered a cactus. It blooms with large dark red flowers exuding the smell of rotten meat. But it cannot be used to kill flies, except to thin out their offspring.

On a note!
Cacti that eat flies do not exist in nature.

The purpose of the slipway is to attract pollinating flies, not to catch insects. Stapelia beckons. Necrophages, arriving at the smell of carrion, try to lay their eggs in a flower. they get dirty in the pollen of the flower and carry it to the next slipway. When breeding a slipway as a houseplant, pollen is wasted, as well as, since the slipway flower lives for about a day, after which it dies. The larvae that did not have time to hatch die with it.

Carnivorous plants can rightly be considered a miracle of nature. These amazing plants- real predators, they catch insects and arthropods, secrete digestive juice, dissolve the prey and during this process receive most of the nutrients. There are quite a lot of predatory plants (about 600 species are known to science), they have special devices of one kind or another, which they use to attract and hold their victims. In addition, all of them are united by the relative poverty of the soils on which they live, as well as the bright color that attracts insects, as an association with the presence of nectar. Here are the most famous carnivorous plants that use different types traps to lure their prey.

Sundew (Drosera) is a small insectivorous plant with leaves collected in a rosette. Sundews are characterized by moving glandular tentacles topped with sweet, sticky droplets of liquid. When an insect lands on the sticky tentacles, the plant begins to move the rest of the tentacles in the direction of the victim in order to further drive it into a trap. Once the insect is trapped, small sessile glands absorb it and the nutrients go to plant growth.

Venus flytrap (Dionaea Muscipula) - perhaps the most famous carnivorous plant. It is a small plant that feeds mainly on insects and arachnids. The leaf lobes make a snapping motion, slamming shut when its sensory hairs are stimulated. The plant is so developed that it can distinguish a living stimulus from a non-living stimulus. Its leaves slam shut in 0.1 seconds. They are lined with cilia that are as hard as spikes and hold their prey. As soon as the prey is caught, the inner surface of the leaves is gradually stimulated, and the edges of the lobes grow and merge, closing the trap and creating a closed stomach, where the prey is digested.

Darlingtonia californica (Darlingtonia californica) - considered a rare plant, grows in swamps and springs with cold running water in northern California and Oregon.
Cobra Lily or Cobra Plant - Darlingtonia got such a popular name due to outgrowths resembling red twisted snake tongues, and indeed, the leaves resemble a cobra prepared for an attack with a loose hood. Plants attract prey to the entrance to the trapping apparatus with the help of nectar released along the "tongues" of the jug. The light passing through the window, thinning in the wall of the hood of the jug, knocks down the prey, and it falls inside, where it drowns. Bacteria and other microorganisms digest the prey and release the nutrients as a liquid.

Nepenthes, or pitcher (Nepenthes) - predatory herbaceous, bushy liana, widespread in tropical Asia, especially on the island of Kalimantan, as well as in China, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Madagascar, Seychelles. The plant has also earned the nickname "monkey cup" as researchers often observed monkeys drinking rainwater from them. It is a carnivorous plant with a trap that uses water lily-shaped trapping leaves. The trap contains a liquid secreted by the plant, which may have a watery or sticky texture, and in which the insects eaten by the plant drown. Bottom part The bowl contains glands that absorb and distribute nutrients. Most of the plants are small and they only catch insects, but large species, such as Nepenthes Rafflesiana and Nepenthes Rajah, can catch small mammals such as rats, lizards, birds.

Lusitanian dewdrop (Drosophyllum lusitanicum) - or "Portuguese flycatcher", is a semi-shrub native to the Mediterranean close to sundews, emits a sweet aroma that attracts insects that get stuck in a sticky surface and die. The digesting ability of the rosolista is quite large: during the day, one plant medium size successfully copes with prey consisting of several dozen large flies and other insects.

Pinguicula is a carnivorous plant that uses sticky, glandular leaves to lure and digest insects. The leaves are succulent and usually bright green or pink in color. There are two special kind cells located on the upper side of the leaves. Some cells produce a slimy secretion that forms visible drops on the surface of the leaves and acts like Velcro. Other cells produce enzymes that aid the digestive process.

Heliamphora (Heliamphora) is an insectivorous plant that attracts attention with its elegant arrangement of leaves, rolled into rolls and resembling jugs. Urns-leaves are arranged in such a way as to avoid complete flooding of the cavity with water - in the upper part of the urn at a certain level there is a small gap for draining excess moisture. Such a mechanism is not accidental: the plant is faced with the task of drowning the prey lured to the watering hole in the water. And the heliamphora lures insects in this way: instead of a lid on the top of the jug, the tip of the leaf is transformed into a spoon, from which the heliamphora, as it were, offers to taste the nectar. The inner surface of the leaf is covered with small bristles directed downwards. They seem to specially pave the path, offering the insect to carefully descend into the bowl, holding on to the "handrails". And there is no way back and the insects turn into unfortunate drowned people.

Bladderwort (Utricularia) is a carnivorous plant found in fresh water or damp soil. A unique organ, the trapping vesicle, helps these plants capture and utilize prey. Bubble traps in most species are very small, so they can catch very small prey, such as protozoa, while slightly larger traps catch larger prey, such as water fleas or tadpoles. Each vial is provided with a hole closed by an inward-opening valve, as a result of which small aquatic animals can freely enter the inside of the vial, but cannot exit back. When they die, they serve as food for the plant.

Sarracenia is an insectivorous plant that is found in areas of the east coast of North America, and the southeastern part of South America. This plant uses water lily-shaped traps as a trap. The leaves of the plant have developed into a funnel with a hood-like formation that grows over the opening, preventing rainwater from entering, which can dilute the digestive juices. Insects are attracted to color, smell, and secretions like nectar at the edge of a water lily. The slippery surface and the drug that surrounds the nectar encourage insects to fall inward, where they die and are digested by protease and other enzymes.

Byblis, or rainbow plant, is a small species of carnivorous plant native to Australia. The rainbow plant gets its name from the attractive slime that coats the leaves in the sun. The surface of the leaves is completely covered with glandular hairs, which secrete a sticky mucous substance that serves as a trap for small insects that land on the leaves or tentacles of the plant.

Since ancient times, people have tried to decorate their homes with plants, choosing varieties with unusual leaves and bright colors. There are many legends about carnivorous plants that lured into their traps and killed people, but scientists are suspicious of this, but there are more than 300 species of carnivorous insect-eating plants in the world.

Sundew

Sundews live mostly in Australia, but their representatives are found in the wetlands of the temperate zone. Sundew leaves are covered with thin hairs, at the end of each - a drop of a sticky secret, similar to dew. When, attracted by the smell, sticks to the droplet, the leaf of the plant curls up around the prey and digests it.

A great contribution to the study of carnivorous plants was made by the famous naturalist Charles Darwin. In 1875, he published the book Insectivorous Plants, which summarized the results of fifteen years of research.

Venus flytrap

The Venus flytrap is distinguished by an interesting trapping device - two wings with long hairs along the edge slam shut like a trap when an insect lands between them. Digestion of prey takes about ten days. The flytrap is able to distinguish small foreign objects from living creatures, and works only on the latter.

Venus flytrap can be kept at home, subject to necessary conditions- good illumination and humidity, soil composition and, of course, living. Just please do not overfeed the plant - this can lead to its death.

Nepenthys

Nepenthys are otherwise called pitchers because of their trapping devices. At the ends of the leaves of these long vines, reaching 20 meters, there are bright jugs. Insects attracted by the smell, crawling along the edge, often fall to the bottom of the jug and, unable to get out on the slippery surface, are digested.

The horror of the deep

If you carefully consider these creatures, it may seem that they are on our planet from outer space. However, their original habitat is the deep seas and canyons, where they are fixed at the bottom and wait for their unsuspecting prey, calmly swimming past their gaping luminous mouth. When the fish swims as close as possible, they grab it with their stinging tentacles, sting and paralyze it, and then drag the prey into their mouth opening.

Sea predatory plants cannot eat a person, but they can seriously burn them with ease, so divers are not recommended to stretch their hands to everyone beautiful flowers at the bottom of the sea.

Almost all carnivorous plants are animals that specifically produce bright color pigments to attract carefree food. Some of them are even able to reproduce without the participation of other individuals - for example, tunicates - looking like extraterrestrial life forms, simultaneously produce both spermatozoa and eggs.

Carnivorous flowers that modern science knows

Animals masquerading as carnivorous plants are among the simplest primitive groups that appeared on Earth about 500-600 million years ago. In ancient times, they inhabited the entire sea space, including shallow water, but with the advent of stronger predators, they had to move to the depths of the seas. Today, the best known bottom-dwelling carnivores are sea anemones or anemones.

In all seas of the world, with the exception of the Aral and Caspian, there are 1,500 species of sea anemones ranging in size from 2 millimeters to 15 centimeters.

In nature, there are a wide variety of colors of sea anemones - purple, blue, green and pink. Sea anemones are predominantly at depths over 10,000 meters and in coastal shallow waters with very salty water. They are "equipped" with a sucker leg, with which the flowers are attached to the stones, or they burrow into the bottom soil.

Sea anemones feed on small fish and shrimps, which are injected with a strong paralyzing poison at the slightest touch of anemone petals. Then the tentacles draw the prey into the central mouth opening and digest it with the help of the juice of the pharynx and stomach. In addition, the tentacles of these predatory animals protect them from larger marine predators who want to feast on the bright sea anemone.

Carnivorous plants are an amazing creation of nature. Evolution has equipped them with various kinds of fishing devices and digestive glands. About 500 species of carnivorous plants are known.

waiting

Sarracenia has special leaves for catching insects in the form of a water lily, forming a funnel. The plant secretes a secret, the color and smell of which attract insects. They sink to the edge of the funnel and can easily get inside.

Nepenthes is a creeper up to 15 meters high. Trapping leaves have the shape of a water lily, turning into a cup-shaped formation. The calyx closes with a growth resembling a lid.

This cover protects the trap from overflowing with rainwater. The bottom of the bowl contains glands for absorption of nutrients. There are many types of Nepenthes, large species can catch even small mammals like rats.

Bubblewort uses an amazing bubble trap. The pressure in the bubbles is negative, as a result, when the hole is opened, suction occurs. So the insect gets inside.

A leaf of Darlingtonia Californian forms a cavity with a hole. Insects that have got inside are in the thick of hairs that impede progress towards the exit. As a result, they have only one road - to the digestive organs.

The genlisey predator has flowers that act on the principle of a crab claw. To prevent the escape of the insect from the trap, small hairs grow from the inside.

Adhesive

Zhiryanka has special glands on the leaves, the sticky secret of which contains digestive enzymes. The leaves of the oilseed are bright, bright green or Pink colour. They attract insects that sit on the leaf and immediately fall into the trap.

The sundew is equipped with glandular tentacles, at the ends of which a sweet secret is secreted. As soon as the insect sits on one of the tentacles, the rest immediately close around it. It's not a process, but reliable enough.

Byblis is a carnivorous plant native to Australia. Its leaves are covered with glandular hairs that secrete mucus. Slime has an attractive appearance, for which this plant was even nicknamed rainbow.

grabbing

The Venus flytrap uses a two-wing trap. The inner surface of the valves contains a red pigment, and sensitive hairs grow along the border. Stimulation of the hairs closes the trap, leaving the prey in a kind of closed stomach.

The hairs do not close tightly, so that small prey can slip out. After digestion of three victims, the leaf dies off, because there is an excess of nutrients for the plant. While new ones grow, the flycatcher rests from food.

Aldrovanda vesiculosa is an aquatic carnivorous plant. It feeds on small aquatic invertebrates. A bipartite trap can close within tens of milliseconds.

Plant predator, or. The plant is certainly unusual and exotic, but you can grow it at home. Venus flytrap is extremely whimsical. She requires constant attention and reverent care.

The first thing after buying a plant is recommended to transplant. The flycatcher is a marsh plant, so it is necessary to use a mixture for planting that would contain peat or sphagnum moss. Moreover, the soil at the flycatcher should always be moist. Here you need to be extremely careful, because with excessive moisture, the plant will begin to rot.

The flycatcher is very fond of light, but does not tolerate direct sunlight. The air in the room where the plant lives should be humid. The ideal option would be to humidify the air around the plant with water from a spray bottle 2-3 times a day.

The flycatcher actually eats insects. But despite the fact that this is a predator plant, you can’t throw flies and bugs on it yourself. She may simply not digest them, then the rotting of the flower will begin, which will lead to his death. In addition, eating insects is not mandatory for the flycatcher, it resorts to it only as a last resort. With careful care, it is possible that the flycatcher will reward you with its flower.

Most often, predatory flowers are found in areas with poor soils - in deserts, swamps, etc. By attracting insects bright view and smell, the plant ruthlessly eats them, making up for the lack of nutrients.

In total, there are more than 500 species of predator plants in nature. One of the most famous is sundew. Outwardly, it looks like a low plant with wide leaves. Each leaf is covered with red long cilia tipped with a sticky substance. The putrid smell emitted by the sundew attracts insects. They sit on a plant, smear themselves in sticky juice and can no longer fly back. The sundew tightly folds the leaf, imprisoning the victim in a cage, and digests living creatures with the help of special substances similar to digestive juice. The same principle applies to the fattener.

The leaves of the Venus flytrap resemble bright shells with fine hairs along the edges. Moreover, in summer they are much larger than in winter. In order for the trap to work, the victim needs to touch the hairs twice within a few seconds. Thus, the flycatcher avoids a false signal, because the slammed leaf can no longer be opened. Having caught an insect, the plant, with the help of enzymes, processes it to liquid state. Currently, the Venus flytrap is listed in the Red Book due to mass extermination. People plant it at home and use it as a fly catcher.

Darlingtonia Californian attracts prey with its beauty and fragrance. Her flowers are arranged like a jug. The insect sits on the flower and falls inside. Fine hairs located on the inner walls make it impossible to get out. The victim dies inside the flower, and the products of its decay serve as nutrients for the plant.

Sarracenia is a marsh plant of stunning beauty. Its large, jug-shaped flowers are painted in color with crimson veins. The insect flies to the bright color and sweet smell of nectar, sits on the plant and falls to the bottom of the jug. The sarracenia then digests the victim.

Liana nepenthes can reach a length of several meters. The main prey of this plant are insects, but it is quite capable of catching toads, small rodents and even birds. Nepenthes flowers in shape resemble a tall vessel, at the bottom of which there is liquid. The victim flies to the smell of nectar, sits on a flower and rolls down the slippery walls covered with a wax coating. After which the insect is in "nectar", which is actually digestive juice.

The giant biblis is very fond of the inhabitants of Australia. The plant can reach a height of 70 cm, and its petals are covered with such a sticky liquid that it can catch snails and frogs. The secreted juice does not contain bacteria and enzymes, so there are several hypotheses regarding the digestion of the victim. Some scientists believe that fungi are involved in the process, while others are wingless small insects that live on the surface of flowers. Because of the sticky liquid, people use Byblis petals as adhesive tape.