Stylidium alsinoides
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Stylidium alsinoides |
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Stylidium alsinoides R. Br. |
Stylidium alsinoides, a triggerplant, is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the genus Stylidium (family Stylidiaceae). S. alsinoides is one of the few triggerplants that is not entirely endemic to Australia. It is native only to Northeast Australia, Queensland, and the Philippines.[1]
Pollination is achieved through the use of the sensitive "trigger" (a floral column, in which the stamen and style are fused) that snaps forward quickly in response to touch, covering the insect in pollen. All triggerplants can also be described as being protocarnivorous because the glandular trichomes on the scape and flower parts can trap, kill, and digest small insects. It is unknown if this plant engages in nutrient uptake after proteases digest the captured insects, though if it was confirmed, this species would be considered truly carnivorous.[2][3][4]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Good, R. (1925). On the Geographical Distribution of the Stylidiaceae. New Phytologist, 24(4): 225-240.
- ^ Darnowski, Douglas W. (2002). Triggerplants. Australia: Rosenberg Publishing.
- ^ Erickson, Rica. (1961). An introduction to triggerplants. Australian Plants, 1(9): 15-17. (Available online: HTML)
- ^ Darnowski, D.W., Carroll, D.M., PÅ‚achno, B., Kabanoff, E., and Cinnamon, E. (2006). Evidence of protocarnivory in triggerplants (Stylidium spp.; Stylidiaceae). Plant Biology, 8(6): 805-812. (Abstract online: HTML)