Essay On Venus Flytrap

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The Venus Fly Trap, Dionaea muscipula, is a carnivorous plant native to the bogs and swamplands of North and South Carolina. It is an interesting plant and this research paper will be covering the adaptive significance in the insectivtory of the Venus Flytrap and how this evolved into an adaptation for obtaining nutrients in their nutrient poor habitat. How their prey is captured, digestion, lifespan, and vulnerabilities will also be discussed. Including what happens if something other than a bug used for nutrients triggers their traps, and what the actions that take place are when this happens. There is also a reason to believe that this species is at risk for extinction due to fire suppression and poaching.
Evolution and adaptive traits
Carnivorous plants evolved to absorb nutrients with modified leaves rather than their roots. This is because the environment their ancestors lived in had low amounts of available nutrients in the soil. The Venus Flytrap uses energy from the sun and converts the carbon dioxide and water to sugar and oxygen, through the same processes used by our bodies to process carbohydrates, the sugar then converts energy in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). The Venus Flytrap has adapted to the capacity to thrive in the acidic soil. Unlike most plants which does not have the ability to survive in this environment, this plant is able to acquire nutrients, such as nitrogen, by digesting the nutrients in bugs that the nutrient poor soil does not possess. This plant has a lifespan of about 25 years.
Dormancy
Some plants have a dormancy during which almost all activity ceases, or the only growth that happens is below the ground in the root zone. However, Venus Flytraps continue to grow and to pho...

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..., the trap will reopen in about twelve hours. When the trap closes over food, the cilia, finger-like projections, keep larger insects inside. In a few minutes, the trap will shut tightly and form an airtight seal. Then glands on the leaf surface secrete several digestive enzymes that help to decompose the insect. After the digestion of the meal is finished, the leaf will reabsorb the digestive fluid. This signals the plant to reopen the trap (Matt, 2008).
Conclusion
Public recognition of this plant allocates that it is in danger of becoming extinct due fire suppression and illegal poachers collecting them from the wild every year. Although there are some of the same qualities as other plants, the differences in this carnivorous plant and other plants are truly phenomenal. The Venus Flytrap is a unique plant and it shows the power of adaptive evolution.

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