Flesh-Eating Plant Found Stealing Bugs From Its Neighbours
Published 7 Mar 2018, 14:12 GMT, Updated 30 Sept 2019, 09:00 BST
A close picture of a sundew plant showcases the sticky glands that cover its outstretched tentacle-like leaves.
Sundews, or the Drosera, make up the largest genera of carnivorous plants.
The sticky substance on a sundew's leaves helps it lure and trap insects for food.
The researchers also found that the flower of the sundew Drosera tokaiensis closes in a response to touch.
Photograph by Kazuki Tagawa
The sundew's floral activity is probably meant to protect the plant's delicate reproductive parts from predators like the sundew plume moth.
Photograph by Kazuki Tagawa