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"AS nalureirm blood'
; thirsty mood when ,
' iAtf taurht certain
plants innocent enough and
sometimes attractive, tn appear - - .
ance to trap, slay and' devour
animal life with the relentless -ferocity
of a beast of the jungle? .
Then, did the pendulum of
tentiment swing far the - other :
toay, causing her, in softer fancy,
to create animal formations that, . y'":'.:-'
at times, should bloom like field. 77"; "V 7 7
flowers in June? J : ,' -
For such seeming anomalies' ' ,r. '
txist among the specimens of her
handiwork,
Strange to 'think of. a plant, delicate in a
ttuv. noddinr its head to the breeze in nn'tnn
n'ii all iht luvurinut fnliige rihmit it rrJjpjr
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sejyr tfcpAs msercfs ar?ret ca6
lieart it altvais lilted with murderout iwttinrtt '
whose cruel traps are always ready to snapj
upon busy bee or' fluttering moth.
NOTHINO prove propoaltlon Ilka n tlluctratton.
An Inatanc ia famished by th pitcher plant
Thr r Mvoral kinds of pitcher plants
- or toaectloroua plant. they are called and
11 flrmand for Iholf phyntcat jioed a greater amount of.
nitrtf;rn than , they ordinarily' draw from their root'
ourrea. .'.- , ,
8ucn plant an aJway found In peat bog-, swamp,
riltche or other pine whera water la aboxit then roota.
Xecauaa of lack of drlnac and the non-eeratlon of tha
rat-e, ant h plants ara poorly aupplled with nitrogen.
Tlx only to n.k up th doflclcnry ai by captur
ing and absorbing animal Hfe In thl rasa Inwr Ufa.
Hi mon aigniy oevHpi or inrw umwiiivnrouii
pr.iuJj'iJes U known as th Venus flytrfclTyo
n LJ".'nl anywhrro ela it flourishes In tha
VLiA 2 . V" f North t'arollra.
devised is bv.OB ot th. .f of lh, ,,i,nt ,naplad
' . " e, but that portion thoroughly under-
1 T ", " :, aod i abut K ti a grim Ua-
'i it : ' ' '' '
termination that augurs 111 for tha, unfortunate creature
vaught within its graap. .
'litis trap Is the outward, 'or terminal, portion 'of tha.
1 t ma onnirtrtii'trl u.lnlaiiinar llkfi anathftr .leaf. It IS .
hinged at the midrib In stfolv.a.way .thatit closes like the
jaws or. an oia-iaanionea sieei iri. . -
1'heee ta el tiaiiw fcrmnnod atona tha Innrr glilfl e.
tha leaf enlirt in th operation 'Of capture. The first row,
long and stout, extend' from the outer, edge In auch a
way that, when- the leaf folds,', they interlace some
thing like the Anger of the hand when brought to
gthr. Th second row contain few hair. In fiwt, but
three on each side the centre of the lobe; while the very -wvm
h-ameller ttliroe of the third set rover lhlckl. the ,
entire inner surface of each lobe.
Ths six delicate Intermediate hairs serve as triggers
to close theprtoii bsrs. Should an Insect alight on thera -or
on the Inner nirfuc of the leaf. It begin Imme
diately to. close,' the long outer hair coming together
In the form ot veritable prlaon bar. Struggle as It may,
the locklres Insect cannot escape; all the while tha mill-
titude of minute hairs pouring out digestive Juice that
cover the Interior walls.
It Is these juice that complete the work which tha l
trap began; In a short time the Insect yields tip it life. ' '
and Its softer parts are consumed by the plant'a digestive
apperatua, , . .
Should the raDlured lnr ha rlrl lirn nn, nr '
rich In nutritious matter, this process may require aev- ;
. rraltfays on the part of the' 1m f. Then It slowly re-
oped, but for some time thereafter is sluggish and un-
il?!lJun'vU1iCw"u 'roai that has gorged Kself
rilh nesh and Mood. , - .
.JM1 P'toher planu are so called because their
Vnf iUIJ . t"Tm ' Cl,r P'trhera, usually partly
leaf? Wnwater or with a,; luice exuded from the
- io ttart art Raaj-ljj gptclcg ot tra'pylnj planU
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: ;hst catch and , devour Uw -
...geeta, ... ...... .... .. . .v
One of tha beat known la
the bladderwort. a floating
aquatic plant, which, having;
no roots, la usually found la '
quiet pools from which thera
la no danger of Ita being
washed away. Tha trapa are
mall globular atructurea
that capture Inseot larvae or
very minute Insects.
Only ona apeclea of tha
pitcher plant la .found north
of Virginia. This Is tha pur
ple variety, and la located In
awarepe and bogs. The stalk
la short, and the leaves ara
not lifted above the surface,
altheugh at blooming time
the flowers ara elevated a,
" ' foot or mora. " - -
- Further south ' ara found varletiea of tha pitcher '
'. plant holding Its leaves two or three feet high. The eupa
are provided with a kind of lid, or trap dodr, wMofc
. - clones during the heavy, seml-troploal rolni a, wise pro-
. vision of nature to provide against tha weight of water ,
breaking down the atalk.
StlU another protective arrangement marks th4 Calk
. fomla pitcher, tha ton of which ia covered with a hood
; that, bending over, shelters tha Interior. On tha aide of
' , the hood opposite the mouth of the trap ara a number of
- . apots. which some botanlsta regard ae fale wisdom.
' - The voraclowmeaa of the pitcher planta found Is
the tropical forests of the East Indian Islands exceeda
. that of their American relatrves. Their pendant cups
are provided with llils or covers, which hot only close
.; over the struggling v let I ma caught within, but keep out
'. i avery drop of rainwater. i - ,
v. t These eupa, too, are-partly -filled -with water, but -water
which they supply themselves.. - A curious thing
about tha fluid Is that ft contains a digestive element
- resembling the pancreatic Juice of the human stomach.
More effective In aiding capture la thla fluid than th
ordinary rainwater found in moat varletiea of the pitcher '
-replant. Ai1jralllngint-ordlnftry water la -frequently '
abla to rsfami.becyeUQto,qthlckJy:vcQwel.
... with clone-set baJra that It does not get thoroughly wet, -
.A suoetance known aa aaerln Is found in the eupa
! of theae Kast Indian insect traps. Its peculiarity la that ''
' , It causea every pert of a hairy surface to become wet
- : almost ae soon as tha fly falls Into the tank, which moan
"", quick and certain death to the Insect.
. "' Turning from a atudy of planta that trap and devour
- Insects for a living, one finds the opposite of nature '
, -.. eccentricities In animal life that blossoms as a flower.
A curious manifestation of this freak la found In tha
ea anemone, a little creature which bear a kind of fam
ily relationship to the coral polyp.
When closed the anemone somewhat rembles a di
minutive doughnut, considerably smaller at the top than '
. at the hottnm. At times this top opens, and tho little -'
creature puts out a number of long pretty pink or yel
low fingers, ilka tha white petals of a daisy an animal .
in bloom. ...,.
These fingers are the tongues' of tha anemone, with
which It gathers Its food. If you plsce a- bit of meat,.
. - fish or some other palatable food on one side of the
- tongues, it will close about the morsel and convey It
Inward to the mouth. , .
A bl wsomlng creature which hue added to the wealth '
- and beauty of the world la the coral polyp. 'The coral
' young remain clinging to the parent body In turn, pro
dure young of their own, which remain; and so the pro-
cese continues. Bach exudes the homy secretion, or lima
C articles, that make the mineral known as coral; piling r -tyer
upon layer until a colony of tha crsaturea produoaa
beautiful flowering piut 7 , " .
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