Genlisea

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iGenlisea

Genlisea violacea traps and leaves

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Lentibulariaceae
Genus:	Genlisea

Species

See text.

Genlisea (corkscrew plants), is a genus of approximately 21 species of carnivorous plant in the family Lentibulariaceae. Occurring in tropical Africa, Madagascar and Brazil, Genlisea is unique in the plant kingdom for specializing in protozoa and for attracting its prey chemically.

These plants are terrestrials or semi-aquatics. They consist of a single stem with small basal rosette of leaves, and a single flower, colored yellow or purple.

They have very unusual traps, which are essentially underground. They are a pair of thin tubes joined in an inverted 'V' shape, with spiral grooves down their lengths that allow the entrance of soil-borne invertebrates. The grooves are lined with inward-pointing hairs that prevent the prey from escaping, and which force the prey items to move towards the centre of the tube. From there, prey are ferried toward the apex of the 'V', where they are digested, furnishing the plant with nutrients lacking from the impoverished soils in which they grow.