Rat-eating plant discovered in Cape York

[Michaelangelica]

Pitcher plants, otherwise known as flesh-eating plants, grow throughout Cape York but now a new, larger species that grows like a vine has been discovered.
The new species has been called "Tenax".

James Cook University ecologist Charles Clarke and a colleague found the new species at a swamp near the Jardine River, but exactly where is a secret.

"They are quite vulnerable," he said.

Rat-eating plant discovered in Cape York - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

[freeztar]

Nepenthes tenax has been known about for a couple years now.

[Michaelangelica]

Originally Posted by freeztar

Nepenthes tenax has been known about for a couple years now.

It must have been a slow day in the news room?

I note that the article is cited at the Wiki link you gave me. That was quick of Wiki.

I did not realise that pitcher plants got that big.

Pity -does not seem to be a phto of it about showing how big it is.

[freeztar]

Originally Posted by Michaelangelica

It must have been a slow day in the news room?

I guess so.

I note that the article is cited at the Wiki link you gave me. That was quick of Wiki.

I was surprised to see that as well.

I did not realise that pitcher plants got that big.

3.5 feet tall is definitely big for a pitcher plant!

Pity -does not seem to be a phto of it about showing how big it is.

I agree. I'd love to see a pic of it.

On the plus side, here's a link to some other Nepenthes pics that are very nice!

[Michaelangelica]

Secret Of The Carnivorous Pitcher Plant's Slurp -- Solved At Last

ScienceDaily (Feb. 2, 2008) — Splash! Ooch! Yum! And so another unsuspecting insect victim of Nepenthes alata (N. alata), commonly known as the carnivorous pitcher plant, falls victim to the digestive fluids at the bottom of the plant's famous cup-shaped leaf.

For almost a century, scientists have sought the full chemical recipe for the pitche
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...128120453.htmr plant's fluid. Japanese scientists now report completely deciphering this complex cocktail of digestive and antibacterial enzymes.

Unlike other plants that absorb nutrients from the soil, carnivorous plants growing in nutrient-poor soils have special organs to capture insects, digest them and absorb the nitrogen and phosphorous their environment sorely lacks. The identity of all the myriad proteins involved in this evolutionary marvel -- some of which could have beneficial applications in medicine and agriculture -- has been a mystery until now.