Sarracenia Oreophila - Morphology and Carnivory

Morphology and Carnivory

Like other members of the genus Sarracenia, the Green Pitcher Plant traps insects using a tubular rolled leaf which collects digestive juices at the bottom. The pitcher tube of this species is similar to that of Sarracenia flava, but has a wider pitcher mouth and neck and is usually somewhat shorter, reaching only 60 cm. (24 in). The uppermost part of the leaf is flared into a lid (the operculum), which prevents excess rain from entering the pitcher and diluting the digestive secretions within. The upper regions of the pitcher are covered in short, stiff, downwards-pointing hairs, which serve to guide insects alighting on the upper portions of the leaf towards the opening of the pitcher tube. The opening of the pitcher tube is retroflexed into a 'nectar roll' or peristome, whose surface is studded with nectar-secreting glands. Prey entering the tube find that their footing is made extremely uncertain by the smooth, waxy secretions found on the surfaces of the upper portion of the tube. Insects losing their footing on this surface plummet to the bottom of the tube, where a combination of digestive fluid, wetting agents and inward-pointing hairs prevent their escape. Some large insects (such as wasps) have been reported to escape from the pitchers on occasion, by chewing their way out through the wall of the tube.

Pitchers can vary from all green plants to lightly and heavily veined examples, as well as clones with heavily pigmented throats. Traps also take on a pink or red flush as they age.