"WHAT?!?"I hear you yell. "Meat-eating plants? Impossible!"
Possible. Yep, reader, you will be blown away by some of these - and some of their cunning tricks. |
A note to the reader:
Admittedly, they're not so much meat-eating plants - it's more like bug-eating plants. Sorry for crushing your plant dreams!
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Why are they here?
Hmm.... yeah.... why bother become bug-eating when you can just stay mineral guzzling?
Ask your little brother/sister/enemy/friend/mom/dad/teacher this, then laugh at them and tell them that they are so dumb, then baffle them by telling them...
In swampy areas, plants have to resort to eating bugs - to get extra nitrates. This is something that plants need to grow. The soil is, in a swamp, low in the vital chemical - and that's why they eat bugs.
Simple, isn't it?
Ask your little brother/sister/enemy/friend/mom/dad/teacher this, then laugh at them and tell them that they are so dumb, then baffle them by telling them...
In swampy areas, plants have to resort to eating bugs - to get extra nitrates. This is something that plants need to grow. The soil is, in a swamp, low in the vital chemical - and that's why they eat bugs.
Simple, isn't it?
Warning!
Don't call your teacher dumb - this could result in a loooooooooooong detention!
Let's get started!
Now we've cleared all that up, it's time to see some of these amazing plants...
Venus Fly Trap
Don't worry - you won't find one of these in your garden! Here's what it looks like...
It's like a monster!
Here's how it catches its prey...
1 First, a fly sees the Venus fly trap, and flies forward to investigate. Nothing happens...
2 It touches a trigger hair. Nothing happens...
3 Then, it touches another trigger hair. Then, it works. The touching of a trigger hair triggers an electrical signal, which triggers the leaf to snap shut. (See what I did there?) It's almost like a pair of jaws!
4 In case you were wondering, the leaf does this because all of the liquid rushing out of special cells. Seconds later, the spikes trap the victim.
5 The insect is squeezed tight by the leaves - this lasts for half an hour!
6 Then, WHILE IT'S STILL ALIVE, the insect is digested.
But it's even slower than you at eating its meal.... it takes two weeks for it to finish!
Here's how it catches its prey...
1 First, a fly sees the Venus fly trap, and flies forward to investigate. Nothing happens...
2 It touches a trigger hair. Nothing happens...
3 Then, it touches another trigger hair. Then, it works. The touching of a trigger hair triggers an electrical signal, which triggers the leaf to snap shut. (See what I did there?) It's almost like a pair of jaws!
4 In case you were wondering, the leaf does this because all of the liquid rushing out of special cells. Seconds later, the spikes trap the victim.
5 The insect is squeezed tight by the leaves - this lasts for half an hour!
6 Then, WHILE IT'S STILL ALIVE, the insect is digested.
But it's even slower than you at eating its meal.... it takes two weeks for it to finish!
Did you know...?
Sometimes, these evil plants have been known to chomp up small frogs!
Pitcher
Below is a picture of a pitcher, ha ha!
Here's how it catches its prey...
1 First, the pitcher opens its 'lid'. Inside the plant is full of digestive juice... Yeach! But that's how it digests its prey. The prey - which is a fly called Grumpy Johnson, is attracted by the sweet smell of nectar! Yummy! So what happens next? Grumpy Johnson, obviously, would land on the rim to sip the nectar. (If you want to sound all clever, the science-y name for the rim is... peristome.) But Grumpy Johnson is in trouble: the peristome is covered by wax, and is pretty slippery.
2 Agggh! Grumpy Johnson falls down, down, down. But wait! Could he climb up? Nope: the downward pointing hairs make this impossible.
3 Plop! Grumpy Johnson plops into water, and glands on the side of the pitcher creates digestive juice. And then it's the end of the road for Grumpy Johnson.
1 First, the pitcher opens its 'lid'. Inside the plant is full of digestive juice... Yeach! But that's how it digests its prey. The prey - which is a fly called Grumpy Johnson, is attracted by the sweet smell of nectar! Yummy! So what happens next? Grumpy Johnson, obviously, would land on the rim to sip the nectar. (If you want to sound all clever, the science-y name for the rim is... peristome.) But Grumpy Johnson is in trouble: the peristome is covered by wax, and is pretty slippery.
2 Agggh! Grumpy Johnson falls down, down, down. But wait! Could he climb up? Nope: the downward pointing hairs make this impossible.
3 Plop! Grumpy Johnson plops into water, and glands on the side of the pitcher creates digestive juice. And then it's the end of the road for Grumpy Johnson.
Cobra Lily
Is it a snake?
Is it a cobra?
No - it's the cobra lily! Amazingly, scientists think the Cobra Lily's sinister appearance is a coincidence, not a bid to scare off hungry animals! Weird! Stupid insects fly into the 'mouth' of the plant. They get confused by the 'windows' on the side, but they can't escape. Like the pitcher plant's victims, they fall and land in digestive juice and end up as a snack - for the plant that is.
Is it a cobra?
No - it's the cobra lily! Amazingly, scientists think the Cobra Lily's sinister appearance is a coincidence, not a bid to scare off hungry animals! Weird! Stupid insects fly into the 'mouth' of the plant. They get confused by the 'windows' on the side, but they can't escape. Like the pitcher plant's victims, they fall and land in digestive juice and end up as a snack - for the plant that is.