The Plant That Dissolves Insects Before Consuming Them
The Plant That Dissolves Insects Before Consuming Them
Some people are really into gardening, but there are many more people who find plants to be rather boring. Plants may be largely stationary, and they may not be as fun to have around the house as a dog or a cat, but plants are just as alive and just as hungry as any other pet. It is difficult to imagine plants as consuming living animals, even animals that are as small as insects. But such plants do exist, and they are known as carnivorous plants. One of the most well known types of carnivorous plants is the venus flytrap, but the plant known as the sundew is far more brutal in its treatment of insect prey. Sundew plants consume insect prey by first melting them with a corrosive enzyme. Some species of sundew require near constant feeding which can wipe out nearby insect habitats.
There are hundreds of sundew plant species in regions all around the world. Most sundew species are found in Australia, but the state of Florida is also home to sundew plants. Sundew plants vary dramatically in size depending on the species. Some sundew plants reach sixty centimeters in height. Sundew plants are covered with tentacles that appear to be water droplets or forms of dew. The appearance of these tentacles easily deceives curious insects. If an insect makes contact with the sticky tentacles that cover sundew leaves, they will likely not be able to escape. Once an insect is stuck in the tentacles, other tentacle-covered leaves come together in order to clasp the unfortunate insect, successfully trapping the it. The leaves slowly move together like hands squishing a bug. Sometimes one single leaf will roll up like a carpet in order to prevent an insect’s escape. The tentacles release an acid and an enzyme that liquifies the captured insect, which provides the plant with its required nutrients. Later on, the sundew leaf will unroll in order to discard the dead insects partially remaining outer shell.
Sundew plants can consume a variety of different insects provided that they are small enough in size. Some people cultivate sundew plants and feed them different types of insects. The most common insects fed to sundew plants include fungus gnats, fruit flies, ants, crickets and even small spiders. However, some ants and spiders may successfully escape a sundews plant’s dangerous tentacles. Sundew plants have even been used by farmers to control damaging fruit fly pests. Recent research has revealed that sundew plants compete with spiders for insect prey. In Florida pink sundew plants compete with wolf spiders for tasty arthropod meals. And the competition is reportedly quite intense.
Have you ever witnessed a carnivorous plant consume an insect in real life or on an educational program?