carnivorous pitcher plant

[pauraque]

While hiking in a conserved wetland, I saw an informational sign about native pitcher plants. I had no idea we had these in New England; I always thought of carnivorous plants as a tropical thing. But I took a look around and they were certainly there!



This appears to be Sarracenia purpurea which has a lot of names in English, including Common Pitcher Plant. The specialized leaves form cup-shaped traps with nectar at the bottom that attracts bugs, which can't escape and are digested to provide nutrition for the plant. In this species the traps sit on the ground, and I don't know if I would have noticed them if I hadn't been looking.



The plant's flowers stood out more than the traps. Each blossom droops on a single stalk. The green and pink petals look thick and sturdy.



Once I knew what to look for I could see them scattered all over the bog. It looks idyllic, but it's a horror scene if you're a bug.

Comments

[cmcmck]

Fascinating things!

[pauraque]

They are!

[redbird]

Cool photos!

Also, the Venus flytrap is native to North and South Carolina.

[pauraque]

Thanks! Now that you say that, I remember I have heard that before.

[pameladean]

Oh, the flower is great! We have these in Minnesota too (also sundews), but I don't happen to have ever seen one flowering.

P.

[pauraque]

I guess I was lucky!

[yourlibrarian]

Hah! Yes, it's all a matter of perspective isn't it. Thanks for sharing the pics!

[pauraque]

My pleasure!

[shadowkat]

Oh, interesting and kind of cool - thanks for sharing.

[pauraque]

:)

[adafrog]

Neat.

[pauraque]

Yup!

[puddleshark]

It's amazing the beautiful, ingenious and deadly things that lurk in bogs! We have Sundew and Bladderwort here, but no Pitcher Plants.

Thank you!

[pauraque]

I would love to see those! All the different ways of trapping prey really are clever.

[shirebound]

Native carnivorous plants, what a discovery!

[pauraque]

I've lived here 15 years and still discovering things!

[signoftea]

I love carnivorous plants, and I love bogs. I grew up in a region with many bogs (in Europe), where sundew could sometimes be found. I enjoyed your pictures very much!

[pauraque]

Sundew are so cool, they look like aliens!

[turlough]

Those plants look so cool! The sort of exotic plant you expect to find in a rainforest, not a temperate bog.

[pauraque]

That's what I would have thought too, but glad to be wrong!

[cyprinella]

Yeah, I've seen Sarracenia purpurea in Nova Scotia and it ranges quite a ways further north into Canada. The greatest native species variety for Sarracenia is in like Mississippi to Georgia but they can grow in a lot more places than people think.