152 DEATH-DEALING FLOWEKS 



a snap, and from glandular hairs on the inside of the 

 bladder exudes a digestive fluid which extracts the 

 nutritive parts of the prisoner, and assists the captor in 

 the exertion involved in sending up a spikelet of gay 

 little yellow flowers. 



British fly-devouring plants are inconspicuous assas- 

 sins compared with certain exotic species. Most of 

 them work with the leaves, like the North American 

 Venus's Flytrap (Dioncea muscipula). These leaves 

 are indeed of surprising mechanism. Every leaf ends 

 in a circular lobe divided into two halves by a strong 

 midrib. Each of these halves is bordered along its 

 outer margin with teeth like a rat-trap ; in the middle 

 of each stand three sensitive hairs. The entire lobe is 

 laid out flat on the ground. An insect walks upon it : 

 all is well, so long as the intruder keeps clear of the 

 said hairs ; but let it touch one of these, and, presto ! 

 the trigger is released, the two half-lobes close like the 

 jaws of a trap, the marginal teeth interlocking, and that 

 insect sees the light of the sun no more. Perhaps the 

 most significant part of this operation is that both half 

 lobes respond to the trigger touch upon one of them, 

 showing complete co-ordination and instantaneous 

 sympathy. 



If Dioncea works on the principle of a spring trap, 

 the pitcher plant (Nepenthes) acts like a baited pitfall. 

 The end of each long leaf is formed into a pocket or 

 vase, in which water collects. Honey is abundantly 

 distilled along the lip of the vase, and the throat of the 

 vase is lined with hairs pointing downwards. An insect 

 creeping in, sucking up the honey as it goes, gets 



