An insect trap adjusting to weather conditions: Nepenthes rafflesiana plants control the fluid level in their pitchers to maximize prey capture.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

Many carnivorous plants rely on open fluid pools or droplets to trap and digest arthropod prey. Here, we investigate, for Nepenthes rafflesiana pitcher plants, how they maintain functional fluid pools inside their traps while growing in open sites exposed to changing weather conditions. We hypothesized that very low or high fluid levels reduce the trapping success of the pitcher and that pitchers possess mechanisms to minimize fluctuations of the fluid level.

Methods

Natural fluid levels of N. rafflesiana pitchers were monitored in the field. Effects of the fluid level on prey capture rate and efficiency were quantified with field and laboratory experiments. To test the capacity of plants to respond to changes in fluid level, we experimentally simulated f

SUBMITTER: Andrew CNS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12933680 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature