Bladderwort: This Plant Eats Faster Than You

[Music] blink and you'll miss this aquatic carnivorous cuties strike in just a few milliseconds it sucks in its prey at up to four meters per second trapping its victim in a watery grave to be digested for precious nutrients these unique and complex suction traps make it the fastest known plant in the world this is the bladderwort hi i'm tasha the amazon and you're watching floor logic today we're talking about utricularia which is latin for small bag we also know them as bladder warts which after squirting cucumber is runner-up for euphemism of the year this genus of over 200 species of carnivorous plants is found in freshwater lakes marshes streams and waterlogged soil on every continent but antarctica given their adaptability to whatever their environment throws at them you're likely to find them anywhere where there's shallow water or boggy conditions don't forget to bring your waders bladderworts are divided into two categories terrestrial living in wet waterlogged or temporarily flooded areas and aquatic either suspended and free-floating on the surface or fixed with a few shoots nestled in the substrate the main aboveboard attraction on these rootless plants are their colorful snapdragon like flowers such a wide range of species also means that bladderwort blooms come in a rainbow of colors from red to yellow to purple to pink and white we've mentioned before that big d charles darwin was a huge carnivorous plant head in his 1888 book insectivorous plants he says the bladders offer the chief point of interest and indeed they do the bladder in bladderwort comes from the tiny sacks under the surface that the plant uses to suck in its prey at turbo speeds its victims include zooplankton water fleas aquatic worms amoebas and mosquito larvae to name a few fighting mosquitoes at the source that's my kind of carnivorous plant the expression hair trigger is an apt description of the mechanism behind the bladderwort's impressive ability to capture its prey tiny hairs on each bladder trigger it to spring open so quickly that a vacuum-like force sucks in whatever set off the trap the door then slams shut sealing the delicious snack inside while the traps of the bladderworts are the smallest of all carnivorous species ranging from one to six millimeters they win the prize for the most sophisticated sorry venus flytrap better luck next millennia to suck in its prey at such super speeds each hermetically sealed bladder has negative pressure compared to the water around it when the trap is triggered water shoots inside taking its victims with it the bladder is lined with two types of glands one which secretes digestive enzymes to superfly their prey and absorb the nutrients and one which is responsible for pumping water but glands aren't all you'll find in a bladderwort sac did you see it i told you not to blink within each tiny sack live commensal microorganisms bacteria microfungi algae and more in this relationship the microorganisms get easy access to food in exchange for helping the bladderwort break down its prey but it's still not always clear to researchers which microorganisms are commensal and which are actually prey themselves the ones that can't survive the low oxygen environment of the sealed bladder trap likely become the appetizer for the bladderwort's next meal there's still a lot that scientists don't understand about how utricularia's complex bladders break down and absorb nutrients and the detailed role that commensal microorganisms play in the digestion maybe one of you aspiring botanists will one day crack the code on utricularia's mysterious bladders owning your very own terrestrial bladderwort requires some special care and attention in addition to a few hours of light a day these water loving carnivores need continuously moist soil which after all this aquatic talk like duh master their care and you too can experience the wonder and complexity of this highly advanced carnivorous plant at home so what should we talk about next let me know in the comments and don't forget to subscribe for new episodes every week see ya [Music] [Applause] [Music]

Channel: Animalogic

Views: 435,987

Keywords: animals, animal, logic, education, animalogic, crazy, ugly, weird, gross, beautiful, interesting, facts, about, information, info, school, research, learn, learning, smart, 4k, nature documentary, nature doc, floralogic, second nature, bladderwort, carniverous plant, venus flytrap, Utricularia, sundew, carnivore, this plant eats faster than you, mosquito, fastest plant in the world, pitcher plant, high speed, slow mo, slow motion, hunt, underwater, macro

Id: HQ69c5bRJAU

Length: 5min 0sec (300 seconds)

Published: Fri Sep 10 2021

Reddit Comments

[u/Yue710]

Haven't seen Bladderwort on here. Thought y'all might find this neat.