Q: What is the biggest, most amazing carnivorous plant?
...not Byblis!
...maybe Genlisea?
A: It depends
upon your definition. In terms of sheer bulk, the largest carnivorous plants
are in the genera Nepenthes and
Triphyophyllum---these large vines can grow up to tens
of meters long. Plants in this genus also have traps that have evolved to
capture some of the largest prey, including creatures as large as frogs.
Very rarely, captures of birds or rodents have been reported, but these
cases probably involved sick animals and certainly do not represent the
norm.
In terms of gruesome factor, the most amazing carnivorous plant is probably the familiar
Venus flytrap, which has leaf lobes that quickly capture prey in a terrifying way most dramatic.
Meanwhile,
the fastest-acting trap belongs to the underwater plants in the
genus Utricularia, which suck prey into bladders in times as short as
1/30 of a second. The most complex trap may belong to the related genus, Genlisea.
I cannot even begin to explain this wonder to you without drawings. You can
see parts of this plant's strange little traps snaking out from under its leaves
in the photograph to the right.
Page citations: Brodie J., and Lee, C. 2000; Clarke, C. 1997, 2001;
Lloyd, F.E. 1942; McPherson, S. 2008; Rice, B.A. 2006a.
