Stylidium adnatum

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Stylidium adnatum
S. adnatum print from Curtis's Botanical Magazine.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Asterales Family: Stylidiaceae Subfamily: Stylidioideae Genus: Stylidium Subgenus: Nitrangium Section: Rhynchangium Species: S. adnatum
Binomial name
Stylidium adnatum R. Br.

Stylidium adnatum (the beaked triggerplant) is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the genus Stylidium (family Stylidiaceae). S. adnatum is endemic to Australia and is found primarily in the southwest region of Western Australia.

This species is leafy-stemmed and scrambling, growing up to 10 cm tall with leaves to 3 cm long and 5 mm wide. It blooms in late winter and spring with small (3-4 mm wide), white flowers that bear red stripes.^[1] S. adnatum is primarily found in jarrah and karri forests, among reeds of paperbark swamps, and in heath by streams entering the ocean.^[2] Stylidium adnatum var. abbreviatum (Benth., 1868) is a variety of this species found in wild populations and is noted for its short and dense inflorescence. The variety was discovered and named twice, the second being S. adnatum var. propinquum (R. Br.), though this name is no longer used.^{[2] [3]}

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.^[1][4][5]

[edit] See also

• List of Stylidium species

[edit] References