Chapter 1
The plant world's cleverest tricksters
Chapter 2
Giants, stinkers, and survivors of the extremes
Chapter 3
Plants that move, groove, and explode
YOUR GOAL
Master of Outrageous outlaws of the plant kingdom
Ch 1 · The plant world's cleverest tricksters
schopenhauer The Western Australian hammer orchid tricks male wasps into pollinating it.
schopenhauer Certain orchids trick male insects into mating with their flowers by mimicking the scent and appearance of female bugs.
schopenhauer Pitcher plants lure prey into deep, wax-lined pools of digestive fluid using sweet nectar and slippery rims.
BETA
schopenhauer Match each sneaky sprout to its trap to discover how the world's strangest plants survive.
Fun Fact
Flytrap memory: The Venus flytrap can count up to five to determine if its captured prey is large enough to be worth digesting.
Glossary
mimicry (noun)
The close external resemblance of an animal or plant to another organism or to an inanimate object. Australian hammer orchids employ this, mimicking female thynnid wasps to trick male pollinators into transferring pollen.
The close external resemblance of an animal or plant to another organism or to an inanimate object. Australian hammer orchids employ this, mimicking female thynnid wasps to trick male pollinators into transferring pollen.
Quiz
What is the approximate speed at which an aquatic bladderwort trap vacuums in its prey?
Quiz
What animal uses certain Borneo pitcher plants as a toilet in exchange for providing nutrients?
Quiz
What do carnivorous plants primarily extract from their prey to survive in nutrient-poor soils?
Quiz
How many times must a Venus flytrap's trigger hairs be touched within 20 seconds to trigger closure?
Quiz
Which insect does the Western Australian hammer orchid mimic to achieve pollination?