P. agnata

Oliver Gluch's
World of Carnivorous Plants
or:

"What you always wanted to know about butterworts"

last update : 1st February 2021 Impressum Datenschutzerklärung

P. filifolia
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What is a butterwort?

Butterworts (Latin: Pinguicula) are carnivorous plants which are able to use insects as food source beside the uptake of nutrients by roots. With the help of sticky traps the plants can "catch" insects. The traps consist of hair with mucous glands at the end that secrete sticky substances (mostly sugar). Beside the hairy glands there a sessile glands on top of the leaves which secrete enzymes that "digest" the preys (works like in a human stomach). The glittering secretions of the glands and the mushroom-like odour are mostly responsible for the attraction of prey. In botanical terms butterworts belong to the plant family of Lentibulariaceae.Within this family there are other genus with insectivorous capabilities. The name Pinguicula is derived from the Latin word pinguis, literally meaning "small and fat one".

Interested in knowing more about these curious plants?

Then take a look at the following pages with a lot of information and nice photos of different butterwort species.

 

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