We once heard that the strange fly-eating plant called the Venus Flytrap was found in an area where a meteorite hit, but this turns out not to be true: it’s simply a case of evolution.The Flytrap is a plant that acts like an animal. There are other fascinating carnivorous plants, such as pitcher plants, which entice insects to them, then drown them, as well as a carnivorous plant called the Waterwheel that grows underwater.
In BBC News, Matt Walker writes that Charles Darwin described the Venus flytrap as “one of the most wonderful plants in the world.” Walker quotes botanist Don Waller as saying, “Darwin was fascinated by carnivorous plants in general and the Venus flytrap in particular, I think, partly because they go against type. In his time and ours, most of us feel that plants are passive, harmless, and can’t move. But the Venus flytrap acts like an animal, it moves fast and eats fresh meat.”
The Flytrap is becoming rare in the wild, and should be listed as endangered in the US, where it only lives in North and South Carolina.
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