Rapid plant movement
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rapid plant movement encompasses movement in plant structures occurring over a very short period of time, usually under one second. For example, the Venus Flytrap closes its trap in about 100 milliseconds. The Dogwood Bunchberry's flower opens its petals and fires pollen in less than 0.5 milliseconds. The record is currently held by the White Mulberry tree, with flower movement taking 25 μs, moving petals to velocities in excess of half the speed of sound- near the theoretical physical limits for movements in plants.
These rapid plant movements differ from the more common, but much slower "growth-movements" of plants, called tropisms.
Charles Darwin in 1880 published his last work before his death, The Power of Movement in Plants.
[edit] Plants that capture and consume prey
- Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula)
- Waterwheel Plant (Aldrovanda vesiculosa)
- Bladderwort (Utricularia)
- Certain varieties of Sundew (Drosera)
[edit] Plants that move leaves for other reasons
- Sensitive Plant (Mimosa pudica)
- Catclaw Brier (Mimosa nuttallii)
- Telegraph plant (Desmodium gyrans)
- Partridge pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata)
- Sensitive pea (Cassia nictitans)
- Roemer sensitive briar (Schrankia roemeriana)
- Yellow Neptunia (Neptunia lutea)
[edit] Plants that spread seeds or pollen by rapid movement
- Squirting cucumber (Ecballium agreste)
- Impatiens (Impatiens x)
- Triggerplant (All Stylidium species)
- Canadian Dwarf Cornel (aka Dogwood Bunchberry) (Cornus canadensis)
- White Mulberry (Morus alba)
- Orchid (All Catasetum genus)
