The Venus Flytrap’s Double Life
In A Trap in Bloom: The Venus Flytrap’s Double Life, narrator Sir David Attenborough introduces the Venus flytrap, a carnivorous plant that attracts insects with sweet nectar on its leaves. When an insect triggers the hairs on the trap, it snaps shut. After a few days it reopens, leaving only the insect’s dry remains. However, Venus flytraps also need to pollinate, so it grows tall flowers away from its traps, allowing insects to safely feed on nectar and spread pollen, ensuring the plant can reproduce. This video is excerpted from BBC's Life, a show that explores the remarkable strategies animals and plants use to ensure their survival.
Lesson Express
Q: How is the Venus flytrap’s method of capturing food different from other plants?
A: The Venus flytrap is unique because it captures and digests insects for nutrients, while most plants get their food from the soil and sunlight. This makes it a carnivorous plant; however, typical plants are not predators.
Q: Why do you think the Venus flytrap resets after catching an insect?
A: The Venus flytrap resets after catching an insect because it needs to be ready for the next meal. After digesting the insect, the trap reopens and the plant can catch another insect, ensuring it has a constant supply of nutrients to survive.
Q: What do you think would happen if the Venus flytrap didn’t have its flower to attract pollinators?
A: It might struggle to get pollinated because its traps are too close to the ground. The flowers are tall and far away from the traps, so insects can safely feed on the nectar while also helping the plant spread pollen.