Carnivorous plant

A plant that captures and digests animals, usually insects, to obtain nutrients scarce in its growing environment. It absorbs nutrients released from prey while still making sugars through photosynthesis.

Pitfall trap: A trap in which prey falls into a container and cannot escape. Pitcher plants use fluid-filled pits to hold prey until it is digested.
Photosynthesis: The process by which plants and other organisms use light energy to make organic compounds from carbon dioxide and water. Carnivorous plants still rely on photosynthesis for their carbon and energy.
Venus flytrap: A carnivorous plant whose hinged leaves snap shut when prey stimulates trigger hairs. Its rapid snap trap is the best-known example of active plant prey capture.
Convergent evolution: The independent evolution of similar traits in different lineages, often under similar environmental pressures. Carnivorous traps arose independently in multiple plant groups.
Flypaper trap: A trap that catches prey on a sticky surface. Sticky leaves capture insects without closing around them.
Nitrogen cycle: The movement of nitrogen among the atmosphere, organisms, soil, and water. Prey provides nitrogen that nutrient-poor habitats often fail to supply.
Sundew: A genus of carnivorous plants with gland-tipped leaves that trap prey in sticky secretions. Sundews demonstrate flypaper capture and slow leaf movement around prey.
Charles Darwin: An English naturalist who developed the theory of evolution by natural selection. Darwin's experiments established that insect-eating plants digest and benefit from prey.
Snap trap: A trap that closes rapidly when prey touches sensitive structures. The Venus flytrap uses rapid leaf closure to retain prey.
Peat bog: A waterlogged ecosystem where partially decayed plant matter accumulates as peat. Many carnivorous plants grow in acidic, nutrient-poor bogs.

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