9. Insectivorus Plants - Lecture 9 Insectivorous Plants I....

Lecture 9
Insectivorous Plants
I. Charles Darwin “Insectivorous Plants” 1875
II. 500 species of plants
A. Nitrogen- poor soils
B. Acid bogs
C. Heavy volcanic clays
III. Mechanisms to “trap” insects (attractant)
A. Sticky exudates (attractive to insects) - fly
catcher, sundew

Insectivorous Plants
B. Modified structures (color or nectar) -
pitcher plants
C. Modified leaves (color or nectar-like
substance) - Venus fly trap
IV. Digestion - glands secret enzymatic fluid to
digest insects (except exoskeleton)
V. Absorb nutrients through plant tissues

Sundew
Pitcher plant
Venus fly trap - active trap
passive traps

What insects do for a living: phytophages
Phytophagous - feeds on living plants
(herbivores)
A. Plants are primary producers (autotrophs)
B. Insects are consumers (heterotrophs)
1. Primary consumers - herbivory
(phytophages)
2. Secondary or tertiary consumers (predators,
parasitoids, parasites)
3. Scavengers