Insectivorous flower. Carnivorous carnivorous plants

All known flowers can be divided into groups. Some classes can only be held at home without natural weather. Others can be grown strictly outside. There are flowers that will grow well in difficult conditions - be it in a greenhouse or in the yard. Having determined which variety a plant is assigned to, it becomes easy to organize proper care. The main maintenance methods consist of adjusting air humidity, the intensity of moisture delivery to the soil and controlling a safe temperature. Lighting is one of the main components.

Insectivorous carnivorous plant

The genus Drosera (sundews) includes about 130 plant species. They live in tropical swamps, in the long-drying soils of the Australian subtropics, and even beyond the Arctic Circle in the tundra. IN middle lane In Russia you can find round-leaved sundew. Sundews usually catch small insects, but some species are capable of catching larger prey.

Sundew leaves are covered in red or bright orange hairs, each topped with a shiny droplet of liquid. Tropical sundews' leaves resemble a necklace of many hundreds of dewdrop beads sparkling in the sun. But this is a deadly necklace: attracted by the shine of the droplets, the reddish color of the leaf and its smell, the insect gets stuck in the sticky surface.

The victim's desperate attempts to free herself lead to more and more neighboring hairs leaning toward her, and in the end she finds herself covered in sticky mucus. The insect dies. The sundew then secretes an enzyme that dissolves the prey. Only the wings, chitinous cover and other hard parts remain intact. If not one insect lands on a leaf, but two at once, then the hairs seem to share their responsibilities and cope with both.

It acts almost in the same way as a sundew, luring insects with the sticky secretions of its long, tapering leaves, collected in a basal rosette. Sometimes the edges of the leaves bend inward, and the prey in such a tray becomes locked. Other leaf cells then secrete digestive enzymes. After absorbing the “dish,” the leaf unfolds and is ready to act again.

Venus flytrap

The genus Dionaea includes only one species, Dioneae muscipulata, better known as the Venus flytrap. This is the only plant in which the catching of insects by the rapid movement of the trap can be observed even with the naked eye. In nature, the flycatcher is found in the swamps of North and South Carolina.

abstract, added 03/12/2010

Each leaf contains up to two hundred hairs. A drop of liquid glistens at the tip of each hair. She looks like a drop of dew. Hence the name of the plant - round-leaved sundew. This is a real predator plant. Shiny sticky drops that attract insects contain a whole range of substances that take part in the digestion of victims. The drops also contain the substance coniine, which immobilizes caught insects. In response to the movements of the adhered insect, the neighboring hairs are drawn towards the victim, and the sundew leaf itself begins to gradually close. Digestion of a medium-sized prey occurs within 2-3 days. On the leaf that opens after some time, almost nothing remains of the victim except an empty skin. Unlike the Venus flytrap, sundews have an extremely wide distribution - they are found on all continents except Antarctica. The plant's generic name, drosera, alludes to the droplets of sticky mucous liquid that appear on the upper side and along the edges of its leaves (translated from Greek language drozos - "dew"). Americans call sundew “grass” for its droplets of liquid sparkling in the sun. precious stones" Sundews live a long time - the age of an individual plant can be tens of years. The dwarf sundew, Drosera pygmy, which grows in Australia, is considered the smallest; the length of its leaves does not reach 1 cm. Largest size The royal sundew Drosera regia has leaves - up to 60 cm in length. The hunting record for sundews is 51 mosquitoes caught on one plant in 3 hours! It is no coincidence that in Portugal, local residents use sundews instead of sticky fly paper, hanging plants in pots on the walls of their houses. Even strong horseflies stick to the leaves of their favorite sundew!

Venus flytrap

Flycatchers grow throughout the United States. They are found in the eastern coastal sandbars and peat bogs of North and South Carolina. The genus includes a single species. Among other insectivorous plants, the Venus flytrap reacts most quickly to its prey. Large white flowers are collected in terminal few-flowered inflorescences at the top of the peduncle. The fruit is an unevenly cracked capsule filled with two dozen shiny black seeds and surrounded by withered petals. Well-developed specimens of the Venus flytrap can tolerate both drought and temporary flooding without harm. The leaves of this plant, slightly raised above the ground, are collected in a rosette around a long peduncle. The leaf petiole is flat and wide, and the leaf blade has turned into two rounded flaps lying at an angle to each other. Its leaves, equipped with long teeth, look like open traps. The number of teeth along the edge of the trap leaf can exceed 30. Each leaf consists of two halves, reminiscent of shell valves. Insects are attracted to the bright color of the inner surface of the leaf and the sweetish liquid that accumulates on it. There are three sensitive hairs on each half of the leaf. As soon as a fly or other prey touches two of them, weak electrical signals arise in the tissues of the leaf, and in a split second both its halves close. When closed, the teeth of the leaf intersect.

The flytrap trap is triggered in a fraction of seconds. Attempts by the insect to free itself from this “living trap” lead to an even tighter closure of the valves. Mechanical irritation of the hairs can lead to the slamming of the leaf, but in this case the release of digestive substances does not begin. After a successful hunt, digestion of the prey, depending on its size, lasts 1-3 weeks. Sometimes larger delicacies, such as small frogs or slugs, also fall into such a trap. When this happens, the Venus flytrap begins its “feast”. Each leaf can slam shut and expand only 2-3 times, after which it dies. For a long time it was a mystery - how does a flycatcher produce such lightning-fast movement without muscles and nerves? This is one of the fastest movements in the plant kingdom. It turned out that the leaves of the Venus flytrap accumulate elastic energy. They work like convex membranes that switch from one position to another with a sharp click, you just need to lightly press them with your finger. When the leaves open, they are constantly on the verge of precarity. The insect touches the hairs of the plant, and in response it slightly changes the humidity of the leaf (supplies juice into it). The moisture slightly changes the curvature of the surface, serving as a descent, and then the leaf itself jumps into a new stable state - closing the trap. Charles Darwin considered the flytrap "the most wonderful plant in the world."

Zhiryanka - Velcro

In the floodplains of rivers, in sphagnum bogs, in damp meadows and along the shores of shallow lakes they are found unusual plants with thick fleshy basal leaves. If you touch them with your finger, you feel that they are sticky. These are fatty ones. With the help of their sticky leaves butterworts catch insects. The scientific name of the plant is pinguicula. In Latin, penguis means “bold.” The surface of butterwort leaves has an oily shine due to the sugary mucus secreted by special glands located in the leaf tissues. This mucous coating is so sticky that an insect landing on a leaf is literally glued to its surface. (After the insect comes into contact with the leaf, an additional portion of sticky mucus is released in this place). Then the leaf begins to gradually curl, digestive juices come into play and the captured victim begins to be digested. Soon, all that remains of the captured insect is one empty shell. Butterworts are able to digest even plant pollen that has fallen on its leaves. There are about 80 species of butterwort in the world. A minority of species grow in Eurasia, North America and southern Greenland. Most are in Asia, Central and South America. There are 12 species of butterwort found in Europe, and 10 species in North America. There are 6 species of butterwort growing on the territory of Russia. Butterworts are also found in the very south of South America. Even in the tundra there are butterworts. Growing in the north of Eurasia, the common butterwort is a relict plant of the Ice Age. It means that this type existed when most of Europe was covered with a thick layer of glaciers.

Rosolist

Dew leaf (Dr osophyllum lusitanicum L.) is one of the most remarkable insectivorous plants, growing in Portugal and Morocco. The plant differs from other insectivores (Drosera, Pinguicula) both in its appearance and, especially, in its biological characteristics. It does not grow in damp, swampy places, like our sundew, but in dry mountains, on sandy, often even rocky soil. Its stem very often reaches a height of 1/4 arshin and at the top bears single flowers on several, but few short branches, up to 3 cm in diameter. The leaves are located in large quantities at the base of the stem, but are also found higher along the entire stem. They are linearly elongated, gradually tapering towards their upper end. There is a small groove on the upper surface of the leaves. The leaves and stems of dewweed are quite densely covered with small glands on clearly visible stalks. These glands with stalks have the shape of small hat fungi and are always covered with their secretion - small shiny droplets of liquid, reminiscent of dew drops, from which the plant itself received the name dew leaf. In color, the reddish glands of the dew leaf strongly resemble those of the sundew, and in their shape they are close to the glands of the butterwort (Pinguicula), an insectivorous plant that is often found in our peat bogs. In addition to these stalked glands, clearly visible to the naked eye, the dew leaf contains even smaller, sessile glands, almost colorless and differing from the stalked ones in that they secrete droplets of colorless sticky and acidic liquid only under the influence of the touch of nitrogenous bodies. The liquid of these sessile glands is very sticky, strongly sticks to objects that touch the glands, but easily detaches from them. When an insect lands on a dew leaf, all its parts are quickly glued together by secretions of sessile glands, but the animal can, nevertheless, move slowly at first, since the sticky liquid of the glands is easily separated from the latter. After a short period of time, the insect becomes completely covered with drops of secretions from other glands, loses the ability to move, dies and falls on the underlying columnar glands, which, with the help of their secretions, extract everything soluble from the corpse and absorb it. Thus, the dew leaf feeds on nitrogenous substances of animal origin. The glands of the dew leaf, having lost droplets of their sticky liquid, secrete it again. These secretions are so abundant that the entire plant is sometimes completely covered with insects, both newly settled and dead and already decomposed. In the vicinity of Oporto, where dew leaf is quite common, peasants collect this plant and hang it in their living quarters to catch and kill flies.

Aldrovanda

Cephalotus follicularis Cephalotus is endemic to the South-Western Australian floristic province. It is found in a limited area that extends along the sea coast in the extreme southeast of the province. Cephalotus grows in relatively dry places along the edges of peat bogs. This is a small herbaceous plant with an underground rhizome. Every year a rosette of closely spaced basal leaves is formed. The leaves are of two types - the upper (inner) leaves are flat, whole, thick, with glands on the petiole and on the underside of the blade, and the lower (outer) leaves are turned into complexly arranged trapping jugs, located more or less obliquely on the soil surface. Flat leaves develop during the Australian autumn (March - April) and reach full development in the spring (August - September), while pitcher leaves develop in winter and spring and are fully formed and active in the summer (November - January) when insects are most abundant. In November - December, a very long leafless peduncle rises from the middle of the rosette, bearing at the top an inflorescence consisting of small lateral dichasias, each of which consists of 3-8 flowers. Flowering occurs in January and early February. The flowers are small, whitish, bisexual, petalless. The calyx is fused-leaved, 6-lobed. There are 12 stamens, in two alternating circles, attached to the top of the calyx tube at the outer edge of the thick disk. A hemispherical cell mass is formed on the outer side of the connective tissue, which gave the French botanist J. de Labillardiere (1806), who first described this plant, the reason to call it cephalothus (Greek kephalotos - capitate). The gynoecium is apocarpous, of 6 carpels located in one circle; the carpels are elongated into a slightly bent column and on the ventral side of the upper part are covered with very small stigmatic papillae. Each carpel usually contains 1 (rarely 2) basal ovules. The fruit is multi-leafed, ripening in February or March. The fruits are covered with hairs bent downwards; the columns remain attached to the fruit, lengthen and curve outward in a hook-like manner. The hairs and hook-shaped style facilitate zoochoric dispersal. Seeds with a very small embryo surrounded by abundant fleshy endosperm.

In the structure and vital activity of the cephalothus, the greatest interest is caused by the pitcher leaves, the morphology and biology of which is devoted to quite a large literature. Pitcher leaves consist of an ovoid pitcher 0.5 to 3 cm long and a hairy petiole oriented almost perpendicular to its axis. When young, the jug is closed with a lid, which subsequently opens. The pitcher and cap are the result of invagination of the leaf blade. As is known, leaves of the ascidian type (from the Greek askidion - sac) are sometimes found as anomalies in plants with normal flat leaves, which is caused by uneven tissue growth. Cephalotus quite often has abnormal leaves, representing different stages of transformation of the common flat sheet into a pitcher leaf, described by the English botanist A. Dixon (1882). They correspond to some extent to the stages of ontogenetic development of the pitcher plant, first carefully studied by the German botanist A.V. Eichler (1881). The structure of the cephalothus pitcher leaf is so remarkable that it needs to be discussed in a little more detail. The epidermis of the outer surface of the pitcher, consisting of thick-walled cells, is equipped with stomata and submerged glands. In addition, three somewhat flattened ridges stretch along the entire length of the jug. All three ridges are covered with long hairs. But the most interesting is the inner surface of the jug, which we will begin to get acquainted with with its obliquely upward directed hole, or throat. The edge of the opening is framed by a rather thick rim, or peristome (from the Greek peri - around, about and stoma - mouth), which is interrupted only at the point where the cap departs. The rim seems to be corrugated, with alternating ridges and grooves, each ridge forming a claw-like tooth directed downward, inside the urn. The teeth are dark red and contrast well with the light green color of the deep grooves. If we now make a longitudinal section of the jug, then in its upper part we will see a pale green collar from 2 to 8 mm wide, which is a continuation of the peristome and hangs with its lower sharp edge in the form of a cornice. The collar consists mainly of spongy parenchyma, which forms the thickest part of the pitcher wall. It is covered with very peculiar imbricated epidermal cells overlapping each other, the surface of which is characterized by fine radial streaking. Each of these cells is elongated into a pointed process directed downward. Together with the claw-shaped teeth of the peristome, these processes form a “retaining ring” that prevents the insect from getting out, and a “sliding zone” that facilitates its fall into the jug. Located under the collar inner part The pitcher consists of parenchyma cells with wavy walls. These cells often contain dark red pigment. With the exception of a narrow strip lying directly under the cornice of the collar, in the upper half of this part of the cavity of the jug there are numerous small submerged glands, which gradually become larger in the downward direction (i.e. towards that part of the jug that is located closer to the ground). These glands secrete the proteolytic exoenzyme protease, i.e., they have a purely digestive function. On both sides of the lower half of this zone of the pitcher cavity there is one obliquely located dark red bulge or ridge containing numerous large submerged digestive glands. The upper part of the roller is especially rich in glands. These glands play a major role in the digestion of trapped insects. The lower part of the ridge, covered with epidermis with wavy cell walls, is equipped with an exceptionally large number of stomata. These stomata, however, are of an unusual type. Their guard cells have lost the ability to turgor movements, and the stomatal opening is wide open all the time. In essence, these are no longer real stomata. The famous German botanist K. Goebel (1891), who first described these peculiar structures, called them “water pores,” i.e. hydathodes. It is very likely that the lower part of the pitcher is filled with liquid through these hydathodes, although not all researchers agree with this. The lowest part of the inner surface of the jug is completely devoid of glands.

No less interesting is the structure of the lid of the jug, which is an important part of the fishing apparatus. Once or twice forked radial sections of green tissue run along the upper side of the lid. The epidermis of these areas consists of cells with more or less wavy edges and is equipped with hairs. This tissue is equipped with both submerged glands and stomata that are attractive to insects. On the inside of the cap it is dark red. The spaces between the green areas are devoid of chlorophyll and stomata, but have glands. Unlike the green areas, the epidermal cells here are straight. To insects, these almost translucent areas appear open. In their attempts to get out of the trap, they fly into these areas, push off from them and plunge into the cavity of the jug. The edges of the lid are wavy. Imbricated overlapping each other, the epidermal cells of the inner side of the operculum are each elongated into a process that is directed downward to the base of the operculum. These cells are similar to epidermal collar cells, with a fine striation converging towards the end of the process. Between the epidermal cells there are attractive glands, similar to the glands on the outside of the operculum. The pitcher-shaped leaves of Cephalotus are an extremely ingenious trap for insects. Three flat ridges running along the pitcher probably make it easier for crawling insects to access the throat of the pitcher. The variegated color of the jug and the abundance of glands imitate a flower and thus serve as bait for flying insects. Seduced by the secretions of these glands, the insect moves towards the throat of the jug and approaches its cavity, where, as A.J. points out. Hamilton (1904), who studied the biology of Cephalothus in nature, insect for a long time licks the surface of the collar before moving further down. Once on inner side the very smooth and slippery mouth of the urn, it easily slides down and almost inevitably becomes a victim of the cephalothus. The main victims of cephalothus are ants. Insects are digested both by enzymes secreted by the surface of the pitcher and, probably, by bacteria. Chitinous remains of insects are found in the urn, which suggests that the glands of the cephalothus do not secrete chitinases.

Darlingtonia

The only species included in the genus is called Californian Darlingtonia - D. californica, grows in California swamps.

(Darlingtonia californica), a perennial herbaceous insectivorous plant of the Sarracenia family with a rhizome and a rosette of trap leaves. The flowers are solitary, 5-membered, the petals are yellowish with reddish veins, with 15 stamens and a 5-lobed ovary. The fruit is a capsule. The leaves are pitcher-shaped, up to 1 m long, at the edge of the leaf there is a dark red forked leaf-like appendage. On the inner surface of the leaf there are glands that secrete nectar that attracts insects. The walls of trap leaves are covered with hairs that allow insects to move only inward: insects die in the liquid secreted by the leaf and decompose under the influence of bacteria. Darlingtonia is found in marshy soils from northern California to southern Oregon.

Darlingtonia leaves transformed into traps resemble a cobra with a swollen neck preparing to attack. Attracted by the emitted odor, insects end up in storage traps from which they can no longer escape. They dissolve in digestive juices, and the plant receives the necessary nutritional substances. But this is like an additional dish; the main ones come through the root system. Very beautiful yellowish or red-brown flowers on long stems appear in June. Adapt Darlingtonia to room conditions very difficult. It takes root best in special greenhouse boxes, protected from low temperatures by moss or leaves. Staying in the dark during the rest period does not harm them. The best substrate for them it turned out to be ordinary peat.

Heliamphora

Heliamphoras are found in Venezuela, Brazil and Guiana, where they grow on inaccessible sandy plateaus at altitudes of 1000-3000 m above sea level. Heliamphoras are evolutionary relatives of Sarracenia, but in indoor culture they are less common than the latter. The Latin name of the plants can be translated as “swamp pitcher” (Greek helos - “swamp”). Interestingly, this is also one of the local names of the plant. The leaves of heliamphora really resemble in shape water vessels with wide open necks. The edges of the sheet are brought together and seem to be connected by a clearly visible seam. The tip of the leaf is turned into a kind of “cap”. Its dimensions are small; it closes the entrance to the trap rather symbolically. The cap is brightly colored. Often it plays the role of visual bait for future victims. Rainwater accumulates inside the jug. Its inner walls are covered with smooth, downward-pointing projections. The insects that land on them slide down, drown in the liquid of the jug and gradually decompose in it. The genus is considered poorly studied; it includes about eight species, but their number is likely to increase in the future as a result of additional research.

One of the most amazing inventions of plants is leaves. By changing, they can become both delicate petals and sharp dry spines. Some leaves of climbing plants develop into long, curling tendrils. The flexible stem clings to all kinds of supports. With the help of tendril leaves, the stems of peas, pumpkins, cucumbers and grapes climb up. The leaves of the Nepenthes trap can be considered the pinnacle of design art. These amazing plants are found in the warm and humid jungles of Ceylon, Madagascar, South-East Asia, Philippines, New Zealand and northern Australia. The ends of the leaves of Nepenthes have turned into peculiar jugs. They are quite large, each containing up to one liter of sour moisture, so Nepenthes try to secure such a jug with the help of tendrils on the strong stems of neighboring plants. The neck of the jug is surrounded by large spikes that protect its contents from uninvited guests. The entrance to the jug is closed with a lid. Later, a gap appears between it and the body of the jug, which gradually increases. The lid protects the jug from overflowing with rainwater and at the same time serves as a “landing platform” for the main prey of Nepenthes - flying insects. Along the outside of the jug from top to bottom there are two jagged outgrowths, which serve both to support the jug and to guide crawling insects. Attracted by the scent of nectar, they eventually end up inside the pitcher and usually fall into the liquid inside. The inner walls of the trap are so smooth that even insects that crawl well on vertical glass cannot climb them. Occasionally, hummingbirds, small rodents and amphibians become prey for large Nepenthes. The liquid of the pitchers contains digestive acids, in which the prey is gradually digested over several hours. Among predator plants, Nepenthes have the largest traps. In Nepenthes Raja, the length of the jugs reaches 40 cm! You can even drink from them like from glasses. The popular name for Nepenthes traps is “monkey cups”. Some monkeys actually quench their thirst with the help of Nepenthes. The new kind giant carnivorous plants were discovered in the highlands of the central Philippines. Outwardly, the new plant resembles a water lily, and its “pitcher,” with which the plant swallows its victims, is the largest among all carnivorous plants. The plant feeds on small rodents, insects and birds that fall into the “mouth” of the new plant. As researchers later testified, the giant pitcher grows only on the slopes of Mount Victoria; the plant has not yet been found anywhere else. The new species was named Nepenthes attenboroughii in honor of the world-famous British naturalist and TV presenter David Attenborough. Scientists discovered a giant predatory plant at an altitude of 1,600 meters above sea level. A sample of the plant was taken to the University of Palawan, where it was given the name Nepenthes attenboroughii.

Sarracenia

Sarracenia, a genus of plants in the Sarracenia family. Insectivorous perennial herbs with a rhizome up to 25-30 cm long, which grows up to 20-30 years, annually forming rosettes of pitcher leaves (ascidians) up to 75-100 cm long, 5-8 cm in diameter. Leaves usually have reddish veins (in the sun they often turn completely red); in yellow sarracenia (S. flava) they are yellowish-green with red veins. Flowers are solitary, large (4-10 cm in diameter), 5-membered; petals are reddish-purple or yellow (Sarracenia yellow). The column of the pistil at the apex is umbrella-shaped and covers the stamens. 10 species, in North America (mainly in the Atlantic states of the USA). The most widespread is Sarracenia purpurea (S. purpurea). S. grow mainly in swampy forests and sphagnum bogs. Another name for it is “trapping pit”. Each sarracenia leaf, or rather leaf petiole, resembles a bag or jug, narrowed at the top and bottom and swollen in the middle. At the hole leading inside the “jug bag” there is a leaf blade with blood-red veins. It resembles a bright umbrella and is perceived more like a flower than a leaf. Actually, this bright appendage performs the function of a flower, attracting unlucky midges and spiders to the hunting “jug bag”. In addition, insects are attracted to the interior by a pleasant aroma. Looking into the middle of the “bag”, the victim descends deeper and deeper and, ultimately, falls into the water with which the Sarracenia traps are filled even in dry weather. There is no way back from the trapping pit: its walls are covered with many smooth scales, each of which ends in a sharp spike facing down.

Sarracenia can accumulate in long “jug bags” great amount any small arthropod living creature, which is gradually digested with the help of a secretion produced by the tissues of the walls of the “sac”.

Among the diversity flora There are unusual carnivorous plants, predators, of which there are over 500 species. This feature of predator plants (pictured) is explained by living conditions. They grow on poor soils, devoid of nutritional components, therefore, in the course of evolution, they found a way to survive by luring and absorbing insects and even small animals. To do this, leaves and flowers turned into baits and traps, painted in bright colors and emitting a scent that attracted the prey.

Plant predators are present in all climatic zones, and most of them are in the hot and humid tropical forests of Australia, South America and Africa.

Plants are used for hunting various ways, of which there are several. These could be shell-like leaves that enclose their prey inside. In others, sticky leaves are generously smeared with an adhesive substance so that the insects' legs stick tightly. Some plants grow special jug-traps with a slamming lid.

Carnivorous species of the sundew family (English sundew and round-leaved sundew) and bladderwort family grow on the territory of Russia.

Carnivorous plants are classified by habitat and method of attack as:

1. Insectivores, e.g. sundews, sarracenias, nepenthes
2. Aquatic, not disdainful of small crustaceans except insects (pemphigus and aldrovanda)
3. Omnivores that feed on tadpoles, juveniles, frogs, mice and lizards

A common carnivorous plant that grows in swamps is Sarracenia. Its leaves and flowers are brightly colored and covered with veins of crimson capillaries. The leaves are shaped like a hooded vessel filled with sweet juice. The prey insect flies to the color and smell of nectar, sticks to the leaf and slides to the bottom, the leaf curls up. In case of false closure, the leaf opens after some time and continues the “hunt”. To process prey, the plant secretes a special secretion. The leaf remains closed until the nutrients are completely digested and absorbed. Then the cycle repeats.

In the natural environment there is sarracenia on east coast North America, in Texas, Great Lakes region, southeastern Canada.

The habitat of bladderwort (Utricularia) is standing, fresh water or wet ground. In the wild flora, terrestrial and aquatic bladderworts, of which there are 220 species, are found on all continents except those covered with ice.

It does not have roots to provide nutrients, and it has to catch insects and small crustaceans.

The trap is made up of bubbles with something like an entrance that opens when it senses prey. The bubbles, along with the leaves, are located under water. Only flowers remain on the water surface.
The signal about the opening is given by the villi-probes; only an insect or tadpoles will catch them. The bubble opens and absorbs the victim along with water in a split second. Digestion begins.

Genlisea prefers moist terrestrial or semi-aquatic environments. Distributed in the flora of Africa, South and Central America, where 21 plant species have been identified.

This is a small herbaceous plant covered with yellow inflorescences. Genlisea traps look like a crab claw, from which the hairs growing at the entrance prevent them from getting out.

A special feature of the plant is the presence of two types of leaves. Some of them are terrestrial with the process of photosynthesis, while others are underground. Underground leaves replace rhizomes, absorb moisture and provide anchorage. They are like hollow, spiral tubes for luring and assimilation of protozoa, into which they are washed away by the flow of water. They will no longer be able to get out, since they will be digested first.

The hunting tool for butterwort (Pinguicula) is glandular, sticky leaves. There are 80 carnivorous plants of this species. They grow in Asia, on the European continent, in North and South America.

The bright green or pink color of the leaves, covered with a mucous secretion, immediately attracts insects. There are two types of glands on the leaves. The pedicel gland produces a mucous secretion that covers the leaves in drops, and the sessile glands provide the supply of enzymes for processing and absorption.

The carnivorous behavior of most butterworts persists throughout the year. Selected species in winter time form a dense rosette, devoid of the ability to attract and absorb. With the arrival of summer, the plant blooms and throws out young, carnivorous leaves.

Nepenthes lives in the tropical forest and successfully absorbs insects. Outwardly, it resembles a vine, reaching 15 m in length. 130 species have been identified in habitats in Madagascar, Sumatra, Borneo, India, China, Indonesia and Australia.

The liana is covered with leaves that form tendrils at the edge. Gradually, a pitcher flower grows from the tendril, serving as a trap. When it rains, the jug is filled with water, which the monkeys drink; for this reason, Nepenthes was nicknamed “monkey cup” in its homeland.

Midges and bugs that fly to a flower quickly drown in the liquid and fall into the lower part of the bowl, where they are absorbed by the digestive glands.

Certain plant species, for example, Nepenthes Rajah and Nepenthes Rafflesiana, successfully catch and poison small rodents.

The Venus flytrap (Dionaea Muscipula) is the most famous of the carnivore plants. Its prey consists of flies and spiders.

There are 5-7 leaves on a thin, small stem. Trap leaves consist of two halves. The inner surface is painted bright red, and outer side covered with a sticky pigment that catches insects. The hairs on the leaf pick up the prey signal and the halves slam shut in just 0.1 seconds, leaving the victim no chance of escape. A dense row of denticles along the edge of the leaf securely holds the prey. The closed lobules form something like a stomach, where digestion begins, lasting about 10 days.

Each leaf manages to digest 3 insects in its life.

Byblis is a small plant in appearance, painted in the colors of the rainbow. His homeland is in Australia.

The variegated plant is covered with a special, sticky mucus secreted by glandular villi that completely cover the leaves. The adhesive substance becomes a trap for insects caught on the leaves or tentacles of the flower.

The shape of the leaves is round, slightly elongated with a transition to a cone at the edge. The flowers are zygomorphic with 5 curved stamens.

Insectivorous plants in the house

Some species of carnivorous plants are suitable for home keeping. They become the object of interesting observations and discoveries when they feed on a mosquito or annoying fly, relieving us of their presence.

Such plants are unpretentious in care. They are purchased at a flower shop and just follow simple rules:

• To keep it you need a bright place without direct sunlight.
• Most plants are moisture-loving, so watering should be regular.
• Plant in vermiculite, perlite or moss. The substrate is not fertilized and fertile soil do not add.
• Plants are not replanted. Only in case of strong growth is it transferred to a larger pot.
• In winter there is a period of rest, which ends in spring with the creation of new traps.
• It is recommended to remove beautiful flowers so as not to deplete the plant.
• For feeding they use insects from their natural habitat. For example, fruit flies are suitable.

Watch also the video

“It’s poisonous, if you like; but you cannot deny that this is perfect, and perfection is what we, artists, strive for...” I don’t know if the author of the above lines, Oscar Wilde, has heard about predatory plants, but it is his aphorism that comes to mind , when it comes to this paradoxical creation of nature.

Let me make a reservation right away: I’ve never seen anything like this in my flower collection. plant organisms. True, there were two stapelias (variable and large-flowered), which I mistakenly, apparently, classified as insectivores due to their unpleasant aroma. But the living and happy flies that met a blooming succulent on their life path dispelled my hopes.

PLANT-PARADOX

So-called carnivorous plants are found on all continents of our planet. Systematizing botanists include in this group perennial herbaceous plants that come from a wide variety of families and genera, but are each other’s “colleagues” in the way they satisfy the “feeling of hunger.”

As is known, autotrophic metabolism predominates in plants. This means that they convert chemical compounds found in the soil and air into organic substances that serve as a source of nutrition for many other living organisms.

But predator plants replenish the chemical compounds necessary for their development that are not received from the soil due to additional food: insects and occasionally small animals. As a rule, the soils in which these perennials grow are poor in nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, sodium, etc.

In nature, there are not so many insectivores, approximately 0.1% (about 500 species from 6 families) of total number all plants. But, fortunately, there are few unfavorable places that force plants to switch to such an unconventional diet. Most often, such herbs grow in the tropics, but also in temperate climate they can also be found.

On the territory of the former Soviet Union there are 18 species from 4 genera. Residents of the northwestern part of Russia in marshy areas can meet two types of sundews - round-leaved and English.

By the way, in Rus', sundew has enjoyed good fame since ancient times, it was affectionately called God's or sun's dew, the king's eyes, crabgrass and favorite grass. Long before the advent of antibiotics, this herb was widely used in folk medicine for the treatment of respiratory diseases, and was also used for headaches, migraines and as a cosmetic remedy for warts.

HOW DO INSECTIVOROUS PLANTS FEED?

As a rule, “predators” have beautiful bright colors and emit a strong odor that attracts insects. However, some ambers are so pleasant that not only insects like them. For example, the Venus flytrap exudes a sweet aroma. The Indians revered this flower as a symbol of femininity, love and harmony.

Venus flytrap

It is no coincidence that the first part of the name was given to the inhabitant of the North American continent in honor of Venus, the goddess of love and fertility. In some sources you can even find information that perennial grass allegedly releases love pheromones, so extracts of this plant are sometimes used in the perfume industry.

But Darlingtonia smells unpleasant - rotten. This smell is the result of its digestive activity.

During evolution, the leaves of insectivorous plants underwent metamorphosis and turned into trapping organs: sticky traps; water lilies (urns) filled with digestive liquid; as well as quick-acting traps.

Thus, the sundew leaf is densely strewn with a sticky substance; it is not for nothing that the Americans call the plant the herb of precious stones. Seduced by the shine of the “rubies,” the insect lands on the trap leaf and sticks tightly: the more the midge makes an effort to free itself, the more it gets stuck in the sticky syrup.

The sundew is able to distinguish edible from inedible, so the leaf does not react to “false starts”, for example, to raindrops or fallen leaves from other plants. As soon as an insect sits on the trap, the fibers located on the leaf envelop the “victim” from all sides, and the leaf itself curls up into a small cocoon. In a collapsed state, glands begin to secrete, similar in composition to the digestive juice of animals. They are the ones who dissolve the insect’s hard coverings – its chitin, and the nutrients are absorbed and transported through the vessels of the plant. After a few days, the trap opens and it is ready for the “hunt.”

The butterfly plant has a similar principle, only its leaves do not curl. The presence of nitrogen in the insect’s body stimulates the secretion of digestive fluid, which looks like fat, hence the name.

Darlingtonia, nepentas and sarracenia hunt somewhat differently; their leaves have transformed into jugs filled with digestive juice. The insects that find themselves on the inner wall of the leaf slide to the bottom of the trap, where they die.

Nepentas

Sarracenia

But the most active hunt is for our “goddess” - the Venus flytrap. The leaf, more like a shell, is covered with sensitive hairs. It is enough to touch one of them, the doors instantly slam shut. In this fight, the plant usually wins, the insect dies without having time to realize what happened. Having “slammed shut,” the plant begins to secrete digestive glands to digest the prey; after having eaten, the “casket” opens again.

The digestive cycle of insectivorous plants lasts differently - from 5 to 40 hours.

We must admit that growing them at home is quite difficult. Here are a few requirements that I read:

1. Predatory plants are most often grown in florariums.
2. Demanding of light. They do not tolerate direct sunlight.
3. Water with soft water. Many plant growers even recommend using distilled water. Most insectivores cannot tolerate dry soil, but excessive moisture is also detrimental to them.
4. The substrate in which the flower grows is under no circumstances fertilized.
5. Almost never replanted. Occasionally, the overgrown plant is transferred to a larger container.
6. Substrate: vermiculite, perlite, sphagnum moss. Fertile soils are not used.
   
7. Most insectivorous plants enter a dormant period in winter. During sleep, “predators” are not fed. Spring - awakening - the formation of new traps.
8. Bloom. Experts recommend plucking flower ovaries, as this process depletes the plant. This is sometimes very difficult to do because many have very beautiful flowers.
9. Feeding. This is the most difficult thing. I understood one thing: the ideal food is what the plant eats in its natural habitat. You don’t have to feed sundew and butterwort; they find food for themselves (unless, of course, they grow in a closed florarium). Do not feed insects that contain a lot of calcium (mealworms). But fruit flies are fine.
10. Under no circumstances should plants be fertilized; their root system is not adapted to absorb macro- and microelements from the soil. Moreover, fertilizing burns almost atrophied roots.
11. Insectivores are rarely grown from seeds - the similarity is poor. More often, an adult plant is purchased.

I thank Olga Koroleva and Maria Zubova for the photographs provided.

Surely many have heard about flowers eating animals and insects. Today, science knows about several hundred such plants. To characterize them, terms such as “carnivorous flowers” ​​or simply “predatory plants” are used. Most of them feed on small insects, but there are specimens that can even digest a frog.

There are also house plants that feed on insects. Fans of predatory flowers claim that their pet works well against mosquitoes and flies, significantly reducing the population.

What are these plants and why did they become insectivores?

Such flowers can be found on all continents except Antarctica. Mostly these are herbaceous perennials. They belong to two families– Bubbly and Sundew. Plant predators are also found in the countries of the CIS. Some of them, for example, Alpine butterfly, are listed in the Red Book of their countries.

These plants feed on insects steel in the process of evolution. Most of them settle on poor soils where there is a lack of nitrogen and other vital substances. Thus, by eating insects, they receive the necessary nutrition. In the process of evolution, the ability to digest animal protein was developed, and the flowers themselves acquired a lot of qualities that could attract attention. Many of these plants have a smell that insects associate with honey nectar, and they use the peculiar color of leaves and flowers as a distracting maneuver.

There are predators whose inflorescence grows in the form of a water lily. It collects water like a cup when it rains, and remains in excellent shape for a long time. Attracted by the opportunity to drink water, the unfortunate insects land on the petal and slide down to the bottom of the bowl. After the victim drowns, the plant's juice enters the process, which in its action resembles gastric juice.

The process of catching a gullible insect as follows. As soon as a bee or butterfly lands on the petals, the hairs with enzymes enter into the hunting process. The structure of the petal has a lot of traps that can reliably hold an insect and it is almost impossible to escape from the bait. Special enzymes containing poison kill the victim, and the juices from his body flow into the plant tissue. All that remains of the insect is its chitinous shell, which cannot be digested.

However, protein food for predators is only a source of microelements missing in the soil, because photosynthesis remains the main nutrition.

Carnivorous plants

There are about one hundred thousand plants that eat insects in the world. Let's look at the most famous of them.

Genlisey

Habitat of Genlisea – South America and Africa. The herbaceous plant has traps in the form of a spiral. Thanks to the fibers inside the trap, the insect is held for further absorption. It is noteworthy that only those leaves that grow below, along the surface of the earth, are carnivorous. They just eat small insects and simple microorganisms, acting as roots, while upper leaves absolutely safe.

Darlingtonia

An unusual insectivorous plant in the form of a bulb. In the process of evolution, it formed sharp petals in the form of animal fangs. For hunting, Darlingtonia uses a special claw. Outwardly, it looks like an asymmetrical flower with fibers inside. An insidious predator uses its color to lure its prey, which confuses the insect with the help of bright spots located on the surface.

Insectivorous plants with water lily traps

• Nepenthes.
• Cephalotus saccular.
• Sarracenia.

Nepenthes

It, like many insectivorous plants, has petals in the form of a water lily. There are at least one hundred and twenty species of this plant. Some of them are quite large and can even eat small mammals, such as mice. Nepenthes is widespread in Asia, Australia and India. Monkeys use this flower as a source of water. This is why the aborigines nicknamed Nepenthes “monkey bowl.” It grows in the form of a vine with a small root system.

Bucket-shaped flowers always contain water. Insects that land on a water lily simply drown in it, and then the gastric juice of the plant enters the process.

Cephalotus saccular

Large strong water lilies with teeth at the edges they attract insects with the help of a specific smell. The surface of the water lilies itself is smooth and the victim easily slips to the bottom of the inflorescence, from which it is no longer possible to get out. Most often, large tropical ants become victims.

Sarracenia

It can only be found in the northern USA and Canada. The carnivorous Sarracenia catches its prey using water lily-shaped inflorescences. Digestive juice is formed on the petals, which are reliably protected from moisture. It attracts insects with its specific smell, reminiscent of nectar. Sat on the surface petal, the victim is paralyzed by the instantly released narcotic poison.

Insectivorous plants that live in water

• Suction bubble.
• Bubble Aldrovanda.

These predators prefer to live in swampy areas where there is plenty of food for them in the form of mosquitoes and swamp flies.

Suction bubble

This insectivorous plant can be found in many parts of our planet. It is absent, perhaps, only in the Far North. With the power of bubbles, which are hollow inside, the bubble sucks in its victim. Since the plant lives in water, water fleas and tadpoles become its prey. The process of catching prey is very fast and efficient. A small vacuum cleaner tries to suck up everything that floats past with water, and then releases it, leaving everything you need for yourself.

Bubbly Aldrovanda

Lives in water, and prefers swampy areas where there are many insects and tadpoles . Thread-like stems, located in the water, form dense growth. The bristles are elongated, and the crustacean plates have swellings. Thanks to these swellings, Aldrovanda senses the victim and instantly collapses it. The digestion process takes longer, at the end of which only the shell remains of the insect.

Most predator plants prefer to catch their victims using a sticky surface.

Sticky fat woman

Its method of catching is similar to sticky tape, which until recently was used in every home against flies. Zhiryanka leaves have a pleasant pink color, and in places, bright green color. With the help of cells capable of digesting animal food, the plant attracts insects, since the smell emanating from the trunk reminds them of nectar. Sitting on sticky surface, the victim can no longer fly up and becomes food for the flower. There are species that go into hibernation and hide in a dense rosette throughout the winter months.

Byblis rainbow

Externally, this Australian predator looks like a sundew, but in fact the plant is a special type of carnivorous flora. The rounded leaves have hairs that secrete a pink mucus that is very aggressive. Cute flowers are painted in all the colors of the rainbow, and inside the inflorescence there are large stamens. After the victim sits on the flower, it sticks tightly to it.

Venus flytrap

A small insectivorous plant with a thick stem and pretty white flowers, it is happily bred in home greenhouses. It has no more than four leaves on each stem. The prey, falling on the predator's leaf, slams into the trap, after which gastric juice enters the process. The leaves flatten and thicken, increasing in volume. If the victim is large, then it takes at least a week to digest it. The bait, like many predators, is the mucus secreted by the leaf.

A small plant with thin sticky leaves are considered a real glutton among other plant predators. In one day, Lusitanian Rosolite can catch and digest up to thirty large insects. He lures them with the help of a sweet sticky mass secreted on the surface of the leaf.

Insectivorous plants in the house

IN Lately Among fans of home vegetation, growing insectivorous flowers at home has become very popular. You won’t surprise anyone with something as exotic as the Venus flytrap or Sarracenia. People are attracted to everything bright, unusual and dangerous. Some people keep predatory animals or poisonous reptiles, while others prefer piranhas among all the inhabitants of the aquarium. Flower growers are not lagging behind.

What does it take for a plant to be a predator? I felt great in a city apartment.

Carnivorous plants can confidently be called a miracle of nature. Nature itself made sure that plants that colonized soils with insufficient moisture and minerals remained alive. To do this, they acquired the ability to obtain nutrients from insects and arthropods. In all carnivorous plants various mechanisms and devices for catching prey, but they are united by their amazing beauty, which lures potential victims, their small size (prevails), and, of course, their carnivorous diet.

Enjoy watching and have a wonderful mood!

So, let's go.

Sundew

The most famous species of carnivorous plant in our latitudes. On this moment Scientists have recorded about 185 species of sundews. Characteristic feature Sundew is the presence on the leaves of tentacles-hairs, covered with a sticky substance similar to dew. As soon as the insect sticks, the leaf folds and small glands begin to digest the victim and absorb the nutrients that the plant lives on. Sundew “triggers” only on insects; the plant ignores drops of water and dry leaves.

Venus flytrap

The Venus flytrap is also a well-known plant predator, common in our area. It belongs to the sundew family. It feeds on insects and slugs. Its catching mechanism is based on the slamming of two halves of a leaf, which, when triggered, forms the “stomach” of the plant, in which digestion and absorption of useful substances occurs. The process can take up to ten days. On average, about three insects fall into each trap during its life.

Pitcher

Most of the 130 species of Pitcher plant or Nepenthes settled in tropical Asia and similar latitudes. Most of these are shrub or semi-shrub vines that use a jug-shaped trap to catch insects. The jug contains the liquid secreted by the plant. When insects get into it, they drown and the “flower” absorbs nutrients from them. Larger plants can digest even small animals: lizards, mice, birds. The plant has a second name - “monkey cup”, as people often noticed how monkeys drank rainwater of them.

Darlingtonia lives in swamps in North America and is considered a rare plant. The predator received its second name “Cobra Lily” due to its appearance: the plant has a long stem and trap leaves resembling a cobra’s hood, each of which has a pitcher. Insects are attracted by the smell from the jug, and when they get inside, they are confused by the penetrating light through the thinning on the surface of the plant, fall into the liquid in which they drown and are digested.

Pemphigus

This plant has about 220 species, which are found in fresh waters and moist soil on all continents. They are the only carnivorous plants that have a bubble trap. The predator's bubbles are under negative pressure compared to the environment, so when the hole in the trap is opened, water along with the prey rushes inside the trap, which immediately closes. Small species of Bladderwort feed on protozoa, while larger species feed on water fleas and even tadpoles. Its amazing feature is that when favorable conditions can grow roots and stop feeding on living things.

Zhiryanka

Zhiryanka belongs to the bladderwort family, but somehow does not look much like them. The butterwort has roots, and the succulent leaves are collected in a basal rosette and are the plant’s hunting mechanism. The leaves produce a sticky substance that coats them and contains enzymes that digest food. When the prey sticks, the leaf slowly begins to curl, and the mucus begins to digest. Many species of butterwort form a winter rosette for the winter, which is non-carnivorous, and with the onset of summer the plant develops carnivorous leaves.

Byblis

Byblis is similar in appearance to Sundew, but from a botanical point of view, the relationship ends there. The plant, originally from Australia, is a shrub, some species of which can reach 50-70 cm. In its homeland, Byblis is called the “rainbow plant” because of the colorful shimmer in the sun of mucus, which covers the numerous hairs located on the leaves of the plant. The sticky substance is also passive insect trap.

Externally, the leaves of Heliamphora resemble cone-shaped jugs, not completely closed in the upper part. This structure allows the plant to accumulate moisture, which attracts insects and avoids complete flooding of the jug. The insect, attracted by the liquid, descends along the smooth surface of the leaf, relying on the bristles, but cannot get back out, since the bristles are directed downwards, and drowns. Well, the flower successfully digests it and awaits new prey.

Sarracenia

Sarracenia consists of leaves growing from the root system, twisted into a funnel and forming a trap. Closer to the edge, the leaves expand and form a canopy cover that protects the plant’s digestive juice from rain. Insects are lured by the aroma of nectar, and then they can no longer get out on the slippery surface, they die and are assimilated by the flower. The homeland of Sarracenia is America, but in our country the plant has gained popularity and since ancient times some species have been grown as indoor flowers.

Aldrovanda vesiculata

Aldrovanda is an aquatic predator. The plant has no roots, so it floats freely in the pond. As a rule, it feeds on small aquatic larvae and small crustaceans. Aldrovanda vesiculata also belongs to the sundew family, and the hunting mechanism is like that of a Venus flytrap: when prey hits a leaf, it instantly folds in half. Some leaves of this hunter die after their first catch, but quickly growing new leaves compensate for the loss.

Do you think this is where the list of killer plants ends? Nothing like this. Moreover, plants can kill not only small defenseless insects. Read about this and much more in the following articles.

Have a great mood for the whole day!