Last year I started a website about Texas wildflower, called appropriately Wildflowers of Texas. I would spend as many of my days off as I could, travelling around my local area photographing the wildflowers that I saw. Later I decided to create this blog to compliment the website and allow me to share a little more about the plants, locations and scenery that I observed on my outings. After taking a little break from the blog, I have decided to continue, but at a new location. The Wildflower Blog will now be a part of the main Wildflowers of Texas Website. If you wish to continue following my blog you can find it at Wildflower Blog.
Thank you for reading and I hope you will follow me to the new site.
Jay
Texas Wildflowers
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Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Pitcher Plants
There are 6 different genera of carnivorous plants with a total of 45 species in the United States. These carnivorous plants can be categorized into 5 basic types, flytraps, bladderworts, butterworts, sundews and pitcher plants. Of these five basic type only the the Venus Flytrap is not found in the Big Thicket of Texas. On a recent trip to a couple of units of the Big Thicket National Preserve I was able to photograph some pitcher plants. The species of pitcher plant that grows in this area is Sarracenia alata, commonly known as Yellow Trumpets or Pale Pitcher. Unlike the other types mentioned pitcher plants are passive since they do not use movement in the capture and digestion of insects. Pitcher plants capture insects by luring them to the mouth of the trap color, nectar, and sent. Once they land on the lip and venture into the mouth, the insects slip on the waxy inner surface. As the insects slide down the funnel they are further impeded by downward pointing hairs lining the lower portion. Eventually ending up in the bottom of the pitcher where they drown in fluid the contains digestive enzymes. The digestive enzymes decompose the body so it can be absorbed, leaving only the exoskeleton.
Sarracenia alata |
Looking inside the funnel of Sarracenia alata |
Immature leaf of Sarracenia alata. |
Sarracenia flower, cutaway view, with english labels of anatomical parts (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
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