Venus flytraps
Insect-eating bog plants
Venus flytraps are carnivorous plants native to the coastal wetlands of the Carolinas.
Their hinged leaves snap shut when trigger hairs detect an insect, trapping and digesting prey to supplement nutrients scarce in boggy soil.
The dramatic closing mechanism makes them popular houseplants and classroom specimens: The kids watched the Venus flytrap catch a fly.
- snapSudden sharp sound
- carnivorousFeeding on animal flesh
- closeNearby or to shut
- openNot closed
- predatoryExploiting the vulnerable
fly · insectivore · sensitive plant · endangered species · hinged · botanical · Charles Darwin · green · plant · bogs · bog garden · rhizomes · native species · science fiction · nature documentary · red · rapid movement · digestive enzymes
- insect ecologypollination, herbivory, mutualism, coevolution, symbiosis