What is a “carnivorous plant?
• U. dichotomaUtricularia dichotoma • U. trilobaUtricularia triloba • DionaeaDionaea muscipula • Sarracenia alabamensis subsp. wherryiSarracenia alabamensis subsp. wherryi A: This may seem a simple question, but it is actually a matter of some discussion and disagreement. The following is, I believe, the most straightforward and sensible definition, as I wrote it myself (Rice 2009a)! A plant is carnivorous if it has the following three attributes: • The plant must have clear adaptations to capture prey such as a trap. It can have extra features that help improve the trapping efficiency. • The plant has some way to digest the prey into a form that can be absorbed by the plant. The plant may produce digestive enzymes, or it may rely on bacteria or other organisms to perform the digestion for it. • The plant must have a way of absorbing the nutrients, and must benefit from the nutrients. That is a slightly simplified version of my definition, but it notes the three important parts. In the
• Utricularia dichotoma • Utricularia triloba • Dionaea muscipula • Sarracenia alabamensis subsp. wherryi A: This may seem a simple question, but it is actually a matter of some discussion and disagreement. The following is, I believe, the most straightforward and sensible definition, as I wrote it myself (Rice 2010a)! A plant is carnivorous if it has the following three attributes: • The plant must have clear adaptations to capture prey such as a trap. It can have extra features that help improve the trapping efficiency. • The plant has some way to digest the prey into a form that can be absorbed by the plant. The plant may produce digestive enzymes, or it may rely on bacteria or other organisms to perform the digestion for it. • The plant must have a way of absorbing the nutrients, and must benefit from the nutrients. That is a slightly simplified version of my definition, but it notes the three important parts. In the next few FAQ pages I will provide details of each three steps. Pl
• Utricularia dichotoma • Utricularia triloba • Dionaea muscipula • Sarracenia alabamensis subsp. wherryi A: This may seem a simple question, but it is actually a matter of some discussion and disagreement. The following is, I believe, the most straightforward and sensible definition, as I wrote it myself (Rice 2010a, 2011b)! A plant is carnivorous if it has the following three attributes: • The plant must have clear adaptations to capture prey such as a trap. It can have extra features that help improve the trapping efficiency. • The plant has some way to digest the prey into a form that can be absorbed by the plant. The plant may produce digestive enzymes, or it may rely on bacteria or other organisms to perform the digestion for it. • The plant must have a way of absorbing the nutrients, and must benefit from the nutrients. That is a slightly simplified version of my definition, but it notes the three important parts. In the next few FAQ pages I will provide details of each three st
To be considered canivorous, a plant must do the following: 1) attract prey, 2) trap prey, 3) digest prey, Some plants do the first two steps, but unless they also digest the prey, they aren’t carnivorous. Some plants trap insects as a defensive measure or for pollination, but since they don’t digest the insects they caught, they are not considered to be carnivorous. Also, note that digestion does not have to involve the generation of enyzmes by the plant. Some carnivorous plants rely on bacteria to breakdown their captured prey, and the nutrients are then absorbed by the plant. Plants that are considered carnivorous include the following genera: Aldrovanda (Waterwheel Plant), Byblis (Rainbow Plant), Cephalotus (Albany Pitcher Plant), Darlingtonia (Cobra Lily), Dionaea (Venus Flytrap), Drosera (Sundew), Drosophyllum (Portuguese Dewy Pine), Genlisea (Corkscrew Plant), Heliamphora (Sun Pitcher), Ibicella (Devil’s Claw), Nepenthes (Tropical Pitcher Plant), Pinguicula (Butterwort), Sarrace
