Did You Know That Maine Has Two Meat-Eating Plants in the Wild?

When you think of carnivorous plants, the Venus flytrap comes to mind for most people. But did you know that two plants found in Maine prey on insects?

Round Leaf Sundew

According to Wikipedia, the round leaf sundew attracts insects with drops of mucilage, a thick sticky substance that almost all plants produce. It's sugary, sweet, and the perfect meal for its prey.

When insects land, they get stuck to the tentacles of the sundew and are trapped as they are digested for anywhere from 24 to 48 hours.

The sundew, like most carnivorous plants, has evolved to feed off insects due to the lack of nutrients where they grow along the coast of Maine.

Check out this time-lapse video of a round leaf sundew catching an insect and devouring it.

Northern Pitcher Plant

The northern pitcher plant, also known as the purple pitcher plant, lives in bogs and other wet locations in Maine that prevent them from getting the nutrients they need in the soil, so they feed on insects.

It gets its name from the plant's leaves, which are shaped like a water pitcher. It too contains water and other acids and enzymes to break down insects that fall into the pitcher, where they are slowly digested. They may try to escape, but find they are trapped by the downward-pointing hairs, like this insect here, who fell to its death and became a meal for the plant.