Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia species)

Pitcher plants are among the few types of plants that are carnivorous! They eat mostly insects, primarily flies. You may be familiar with another type of carnivorous plant, the Venus flytrap. This was the kind of plant that ate people in the movie, "Little Shop of Horrors."

Pitcher plants do not actively catch their insect prey. They do not have active mobility. They catch their prey by luring the prey into the plant and not letting them escape. Pitcher plants have special adaptations to achieve this. The plants look like tall, green tubes, or "pitchers." At the top of the tube is an opening, which is partly covered by an overhanging leaf. The long leaves that form the tubes have bright, red veins throughout them. The red veins help attract insects and lure them into the tube. The leaves that form the tube are covered with downward pointing spines, and they secrete a sticky substance. Once an insect enters the tube, it is very difficult for the insect to climb out. The insect eventually falls into water held at the bottom of the "pitcher," and the insect drowns.

The plant digests the dead insect slowly. Bacteria in the water help break down the decaying insect. The plant also secretes special chemicals to break down the insect. Once the insect has decayed into tiny pieces and molecules, the leaves of the plant absorb the remains of the insect. It is through this process of digestion and absorption that pitcher plants obtain nutrients.

Pitcher plants are threatened for several reasons. People like to collect them and keep them as house plants. Their habitat is threatened by development because the wet environment they need is often drained. Pitcher plants typically grow in wetlands called bogs, which are similar to swamps. These areas are continuously being developed for agriculture or new home sites. Another problem is that their natural habitat is maintained by fire ecology. Fire suppression allows shrubs to take hold in the bogs and decreases the availability of good habitat for pitcher plants.