Tag: nepenthes

Carnivorous plant finds way to attract bats
Pitcher plants traditionally gain nutrition by trapping and digesting
insects, but in Borneo one particularly large variety of pitcher plant
has managed to adapt itself to take advantage of an alternative source
of nutrition thanks to its rather unusual relationship with bats.

Known as Nepenthes hemsleyana,
the species is still capable of catching insects but does not need to
consume as many because it supplements its nutritional intake with bat
droppings. To attract bats the plant has developed a unique
reflector mechanism that mirrors their ultrasonic communications thus
making it a lot easier for the animals to find it.

“With
these structures, the plants are able to acoustically stand out from
their environments so that bats can easily find them,” said study
co-author Michael Schöner. “Moreover, the bats are clearly able
to distinguish their plant partner from other plants that are similar in
shape, but lack the conspicuous reflector.”