The last embrace

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tvaughan
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The last embrace

Post by tvaughan »

Here for your Sunday enjoyment is Drosera binata, from New Zealand.

She's just attracted a small fly to the tasty looking syrup on the ends of the tentacles of a modified leaf. The fly landed for what it thought was a belly flop into a sea of veritable ambrosia, but couldn't extract itself, and after it wore itself out with futile struggling was pulled down to the small red glands you can see on the middle of the leaf, which are designed to extract the nutrients of what the mobile tentacles catch.

In a couple days, there won't be anything left at all, and the plant, which can get a foot and a half across, will get a bit bigger. You can see some of the the mobile, outside tentacles holding the fly down, and others, who have done their job, moving back into position for the next meal.

These plants are really easy to grow, compared to most carnivorous plants, and nice to have in your kitchen window as long as there's lots of sun, where they will catch and eat anything under the size of a large bumble bee that violates your territorial integrity. Not even a guard dog can do that.

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*Barracuda_52*
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Post by *Barracuda_52* »

:D Awsome close up T of that D. Binata, wish i could get close ups of mine like that. :oops:
I also agree with you on the ease at which these CPs grow..
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Moonbeam
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Post by Moonbeam »

Cool!!!
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swords
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Post by swords »

I put all my CPs outside with my succulents, so far they've mainly caught cottonwood fluff. It's been floating around for weeks! :(
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dustin0352
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Post by dustin0352 »

Thats a pretty cool plant. Does it require lots of humidity like other cp's?
ihc6480
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Post by ihc6480 »

Awesome picture. Just how big can they grow-- I have some neighbors I really don't care for :lol:
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tvaughan
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Post by tvaughan »

They just need light, and lots of it. They get big enough to catch small birds!
daiv
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Post by daiv »

Tim - I definitely enjoy these posts of yours. Always something new to see and informative descriptions to go with it.
All Cacti are succulents, but not all succulents are Cacti
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