How are carnivorous plants categorized?
Carnivorous plants, of which there are between 450 and 500 species and 12 genera (the plural form of genus which is a category or classification made up of species sharing similar characteristics), are classified according to the nature of their trapping mechanisms. The types of trapping mechanisms include active traps, semiactive traps, and passive traps. Active traps capture prey using a rapid motion. Rapid motion is a quick motion triggered by an insect landing on the lobes of the plant. The Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) and the bladderwort (Utricularia vulgaris) are ex-amples of active traps. The Venus flytrap’s hinged lobes—at the tip of the stem—only take a half a second to close when an insect lands on them or when they are otherwise stimulated. Semiactive traps employ a two-stage method. First the prey is caught in the trap’s adhesive…
