15 SCARY PLANTS THAT EAT ANIMALS

for the most part it's the animals who eat the plants in our world sometimes however it can work the other way around let's take a look at 15 plants that eat animals number 15 cobra lily native to regions across northern california and oregon the cobra lily is typically found in boggy places where there's plenty of flowing water but it's increasingly rare to see one in the wild they were given the name because their leaves are said to resemble a cobra in a defensive stance and there's a secondary leaf that protrudes from it that's forked and looks like a snake's tongue it's this unusual shape that allows it to trap insects to feed on the plant pumps water into the interior through its roots and it directs the creatures into this well by having slippery walls and downward facing hairs that mean they're unable to get a grip and try to escape even if an insect that's entered in search of a sweet-smelling aroma does realize what's happening the cobra lily has a back-up plan there's only a tiny entrance hole which is covered and there are several false exits that are blocked by a translucent substance it's virtually impossible to find a way back out again so if the initial trap doesn't work the insect will more than likely run out of energy trying to find an exit and will eventually drop back in once the prey does fall into the water its body begins to be broken up by various different enzymes and the plant has specialized cells that are able to absorb the nutrients number 14 cape sundew cape sundews are a small plant species that's native to the area around the cape peninsula in south africa and have become one of the most common species of sundews thanks to the large number of seeds that they produce and the ease at which they can germinate in virtually any condition their leaves tend to grow up to one and a half inches long and are covered in tentacle-like appendages that are covered in a sticky substance insects attracted by the colors that glisten in the sunlight and the scent become trapped on the tentacles as soon as they make contact and this gives the plan a chance to digest them before they quickly find a way to escape the leaf begins to curl up around the victim which attaches more sticky tentacles and also puts more of its digestive glands which are scattered across the leaves into contact with the insect it takes less than an hour for the leaf to completely cover an insect and the body will be broken down by enzymes within the following six hours the nutrients are absorbed through the red tips of the tentacles and once the process is complete the leaf will unfurl and is ready to capture the next insect that lands on it number 13 sun pitchers there are 23 species of sun pitcher plant that are native to south america their name's actually the result of a mistranslation from their latin name helium fora where instead of being related to helios which means sun the word comes from hellos which means marsh and is the type of environment these plants prefer to grow in the central leaf is modified to form a large tube that's filled with a controlled amount of water through a combination of colors and aromas a wide range of insects are attracted to the edge of the leaf and once they try to walk on it they fall inside depending on the species the leaf can be anywhere between an inch and 20 inches tall and while their colors and native regions differ slightly the means of trapping prey is virtually identical once an insect has fallen into the water its body is digested by various enzymes and in some species there is a symbiotic bacteria that grows inside and does most of the digestion work for the plant this results in the creation of a nutrient-rich liquid inside the leaf which is absorbed by all specialized cells inside the plant it means they're able to thrive in soil that would otherwise be seen as infertile where other plants would struggle to grow number 12 water wheel plant native to regions across europe asia africa and australia the water wheel plant is the second most prevalent carnivorous species in the world and can be so effective at spreading that it's considered to be an invasive species they float in water and surprisingly don't have a root system at all instead they directly absorb the water from their surroundings and rely upon their ability to capture small aquatic animals to provide them with nutrition the central stem which can be up to 16 inches long is covered in specialized trapped leaves that grow in circular clusters each trap is made up of two loaves that can fold against each other and are covered with a series of fine hairs to detect when a creature is within their grasp when triggered the leaves will snap shut in less than two tenths of a second which makes the water wheel plant one of the fastest plant movements in the whole of the animal kingdom to prevent clasping around debris the leaves are also surrounded by hairs that act as filters so the plant can be sure that anything that's reached the inner part of the leaf can only have done so on purpose interestingly the traps only work in very specific environments and must be in water that's warmer than 68 degrees fahrenheit if it's any colder than this the water wheel plant will instead produce a non-carnivorous leaf that are heavier and cause them to sink to the bottom where they'll endure the colder temperatures before rising back to the surface when it heats up again number 11 trigger plant at first no one realized that the trigger plants were actually carnivorous and even now following further study it's thought that they only actually consume animals as a byproduct of their pollination technique as opposed to actively trying to do so native to australia where there are at least 150 variants that rely on insects so much to reproduce that they've developed a detection mechanism which when triggered causes the plant to quickly snap forward and in most cases cover the insect and pollen occasionally however the insect particularly if they are small won't be able to escape this encounter alive instead they may be caught up in the hairs and sticky substance that covers the plant and will slowly be broken down by naturally occurring protease enzymes quite whether the plant is able to digest the nutrients from this process isn't exactly clear though which has led to being classified as a proto-carnivorous species which means that while it can capture and kill insects it's not necessarily able to benefit from it experts are still divided about whether this is correct and are divided between whether the plants develop this ability to provide themselves with nutrition during barren periods or whether it's to prevent small insects from causing damage to their flowers either way it's certainly a unique adaptation and it's hoped that further studies will be able to determine the answer number 10 monkey cup named because they're apparently used by monkeys to drink out of monkey cups are also known as tropical pitcher plants and they're more than 170 species that are found across asia and australia most of them grow in hot and humid regions where they develop shallow root systems and a climbing stem that can in some cases reach up to 49 feet long sword-shaped leaves protrude from the stem and it's from the tip of these that a pitcher will form looking like a cup with a lid this trap is full of liquid that the plant itself produces and is thick and sticky to ensure any creatures that get inside won't be able to escape these plants are particularly effective at capturing flying insects because the fluids viscosity prevents their wings from functioning properly even if it's been diluted by rainwater and to track them in by an aroma that tempts them to attempt a landing on the surface of the liquid to take a drink if they do so they'll soon be pulled further in once they die and decompose the nutrients can then be absorbed by the plant it's not just insects that fall victim to monkey cups however but there have been occasional reports of larger creatures like rats and birds becoming trapped inside especially in cultivated plants where the pitchers can be grown much larger than in the wild number nine corkscrew plant there are around 30 different species of corkscrew plant that can be found in damp ground across africa and central and south america unlike most species of plants they don't actually grow any roots and instead develop a complex network of underground traps that are specifically designed to capture and digest microorganisms in particular protozoans looking no different to other herb-like plants from above ground their traps are made up of hollow round stalks that burrow into the ground in a spiral shape microorganisms spend their lives feeding on the roots of various plant species but if they're unfortunate enough to find a corkscrew plant it'll be the last thing they ever do the traps have a series of openings along them and once something enters one there's no going back the opening closes behind them and they become trapped within a network of hair-like structures that push the organism toward the main part of the plant during this journey it's digested by enzymes within the trap by the time it reaches the end all that's left is a nutritious liquid that the plant can absorb as this happens underground and to microorganisms it was only in 1998 that corkscrew plants were proved to be carnivorous even though charles darwin himself suggested this might be the case more than a century earlier we are constantly adding more people to the top fives production team to bring you all the best content be sure to subscribe with notifications on and hit the like button number eight saracenia purpuria also known as the purple pitcher plant or turtle socks sarasota purpurea is a species of carnivorous plant that's native to the us and canada where it can endure both warm and cold environments they are a popular plant for hobbyists to grow too so far more about their life cycle is known than for virtually any other carnivorous plant they catch their prey in the same way as other pitcher plants in their leaves create a large tube with water at the base and insects are attracted inside where they become trapped and drown it's thought however that only one percent of those that enter actually get stuck so the plant relies on nutrients it can draw from the soil in the first year of growth the plant produces enzymes that break down the prey that's been captured but the leaves stop producing these chemicals in their second and third year if they survive this long they instead rely on a community of bacteria that builds up inside them and it's these microscopic organisms that break down any organic compounds that are caught inside the leaves so the plant can absorb them it's also long been believed that the purple pitcher plant has powerful medicinal purposes and people have used them for hundreds of years in such a way mainly by making a root infusion which was even said to be effective against smallpox number seven burkina reducta by extracting nutrients from animals carnivorous plants are able to grow in extremely poor soil there's no better example of this than brachinia reducta native to venezuela brazil colombia and guiana it's a species of bromeliad which means it's closely related to the pineapple but this plant isn't exactly something you'd want to eat it's highly adaptive and can grow in soil or even on rocks and grows its leaves in such a way that they overlap and form cups that collect water on the inside they're covered with waxy scales which mean any insect that sets foot on it will fall into the liquid and drown and the plant has developed a clever lure to attract prey in the first place the scales inside reflect ultraviolet light which acts as a beacon to insects searching for nectar on plants and add to this a sweet aroma that's emitted from the liquid inside the leaves and the brachinio reducta has an almost constant stream of potential victims walking on the leaves once they've drowned their bodies are decomposed by the digestive enzymes such as phosphatase this releases all the nutrients so they can be absorbed by the plant number six venus flytrap the venus fly trap is undoubtedly the most famous of all the carnivorous plants mainly because it's so easy to grow them in a range of environments that they're often sold as houseplants around the world they're actually native to the east coast of the united states but in recent years have been designated as being vulnerable because of their increasing rarity in their natural habitat the stem of the plant can grow to three or four inches long and a flower usually grows from the tip elsewhere along the stem however a number of fly trapped structures develop these are what the plant is famous for almost looking like a mouth they're made up of two leaves with spines at the tips the exposed parts of the leaves are bright red in color to attract insects and they're covered in tiny hairs it's these hairs that are the triggers to make the trap close but the plants have developed a clever mechanism to ensure they don't waste energy by snapping shut when there isn't any worthwhile prey within their grasp if one hair detects movement the trap will prepare to close but it'll only actually clasp shut if a second hair is triggered within 20 seconds of the first furthermore another five need to be activated before the plant tries to digest what it is caught so it's certain that there's a large enough living insect inside by continually trying to escape an insect causes the two parts of the trap to close so tightly that it forms a hermetic seal and it essentially becomes a temporary stomach digestive enzymes are released inside and it takes up to 10 days for the process to be complete before the trap can open again in weight for another victim number five rora doula there are two known species of rora doula which is an evergreen shrub that can grow up to six and a half feet tall native to the region around the western cape and south africa they have branching stems that don't have any leaves or right at the top where they grow in a rosette-like formation these leaves are covered in sticky tentacles that are of varying sizes and it's with these that they capture their prey insects that are drawn in with the hope of finding food instead find themselves stuck on the leaves without any chance of escape but the more they struggle the more they make contact with the tentacles and they become increasingly incapacitated unlike other carnivorous plants however the rover doula doesn't actually do any of the digestion or extraction of the nutrients themselves instead in a remarkable example of symbiosis they rely on a certain species of insect called paramidia which are immune to the plant's clutches these insects crawl around the aurora doula when they find another insect that's become stuck they'll eat it for themselves later on once they've digested their meal they excrete their feces on the leaves of the plant and it's from these deposits that the plant extracts nutrients for itself it's such an effective relationship that it means rora doula can grow in the most inhospitable of places where other plants wouldn't stand a chance and their ability to capture insects has even led them to being harvested by local communities to be used as a natural fly paper number four large floating bladder wart as the name would suggest the large floating bladder wart is an aquatic plant that sits on the surface of slowly moving rivers and ponds where it lies in wait for animals to get trapped considered to be an invasive species they are native to the southeastern u.s but have been documented far beyond their range because of their ability to thrive in virtually any marine environment they are introduced to there are two main elements to the plant the first is the stem and the flower which reaches above the water surface and is where pollination occurs well the second is a complex web of vine-like structures that are covered in branches and small sticky filaments it's these parts of the plant that captures its food because it has no roots to acquire nutrients in the normal way and essentially acts as a large net that will capture any small animals that swim into it this includes insects and even tadpoles and once they swim into the massive filaments they become stuck anything that's caught is slowly moved to the central stem of the plant where there are leaves that can begin the digestion process they can grow so large and are so efficient at doing this that some specimens have been recorded consuming hundreds of insects or tadpoles in just a few days which has led some researchers to suggest the bladder wart as a potential way to control mosquito and cane toad populations by carefully introducing them to regions where these other invasive species have substantially increased in numbers number three butterwort there are around 80 known species of butterwort which are native across europe north america asia and predominantly south and central america but despite growing in vastly different climates and regions their basic means of gaining the nutrients they need is the same across all with underdeveloped root systems they rely on capturing insects for the vast majority of their intake and are covered in highly specialized leaves which allow them to do so usually green in color these leaves which are between 1 and 12 inches long are covered in fine hair like structures and have a coating of sticky mucilage that sometimes look like small droplets of water on the leaf which has an added effect of attracting insects that are in need of a drink but when they land on one of these they're in for a surprise they become stuck on the leaf and the act of trying to free themselves simply triggers glands to release even more of the substance that will trap them even further some butterworth leaves will also roll up to further imprison the insect and then a cocktail of at least five different digestive enzymes is released to start breaking down the digestible parts of the body now in liquid form the nutrients are simply absorbed through the leaves of the plant and transported throughout while all that will eventually remain of the insect is a husk unlike other carnivorous plants that can reset themselves once they have consumed a meal a butterworts leaf is one use only once its job is done the plant will divert energy to growing and sustaining other leaves so that it can catch more prey while the leaves that have been used will fall away often still with the insects husk attached to it number two moccasin plant the moccasin plant which is also known as the albany pitcher plant or western australia pitcher plant is a species that's native to southwestern australia and is one of the smallest species of pitcher plant growing close to the ground their small leaves which form the trap look just like moccasins shoes and take on a green and red coloration they work in a similar way to other pitcher plants in that they attract insects into the leaf where they become trapped in a reservoir of liquid which contains enzymes that begin to digest its prey but because they grow in a different type of environment they target different creatures to most other carnivorous plants while similar species tend to capture flying insects the moccasin plant specifically grows closer to the ground to attract crawling insects like ants and bugs the other surprising thing about this particular species is that despite looking and functioning like pitcher plants elsewhere in the world they're actually genetically more similar to apple and oak trees than they are to them to function properly and to make the most of the nutrients moccasin plants require a warm environment this isn't always possible however especially in their native region so this species will become dormant for several months each year again unlike other pitchers which because they tend to grow in the tropics are year-round bloomers number one nepenthes at boro eye it seems fitting that one of the world's greatest naturalists would have a newly discovered species named after them you have to wonder how sir david attenborough felt when he found out it was a species of pitcher plant called an apenty's attenborough eye it's native to mount victoria in the philippines and grows a stem of up to five feet tall and has trapped leaves up to one foot tall this makes them some of the largest traps of any pitcher plant and are thought to be able to hold up to half a gallon of viscous liquid to capture prey in while they have adapted to catch insects just like other pitchers it's more than likely that they can also capture larger animals like rodents and small birds and if these got stuck inside it wouldn't take long for them to succumb to the digestive enzymes in the same way as a recently discovered species further research is still required to understand quite how they digest their victims and what their food source is most commonly made up of but this may prove difficult because currently this species of pitcher plant is designated as being critically endangered because of the destruction of their natural habitat watch our nature playlist for more top 15 videos about beautiful nature sit back relax and binge watch all of our best nature videos you

Channel: Top Fives

Views: 134,847

Rating: 4.8351517 out of 5

Keywords: PLANTS THAT EAT ANIMALS

Id: yvM_czhtMEs

Length: 19min 28sec (1168 seconds)

Published: Sat Oct 17 2020