Genlisea

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Genlisea
Genlisea violacea traps and leaves
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Lamiales Family: Lentibulariaceae Genus: Genlisea A.St.-Hil. (1833)
Global distribution of Genlisea
Subgenera
Genlisea Tayloria

Genlisea (pronounced /dʒɛnlɪsiːə/), the corkscrew plant, is a genus of approximately 21 species of carnivorous plant in the family Lentibulariaceae. Occurring in tropical Africa, Madagascar and Brazil, Genlisea is unique in the plant kingdom for specializing in protozoa and for attracting its prey chemically.

These plants are terrestrials or semi-aquatics. They consist of a single stem with small basal rosette of leaves, and a single flower, colored yellow or purple.

They have very unusual traps, which are essentially underground. They are a pair of thin tubes joined in an inverted 'V' shape, with spiral grooves down their lengths that allow the entrance of soil-borne invertebrates. The grooves are lined with inward-pointing hairs that prevent the prey from escaping, and which force the prey items to move towards the centre of the tube. From there, prey are ferried toward the apex of the 'V', where they are digested, furnishing the plant with nutrients lacking from the impoverished soils in which they grow.

[edit] Species

Subgenus Genlisea

• Genlisea africana
• Genlisea angolensis
• Genlisea aurea
• Genlisea barthlottii
• Genlisea filiformis
• Genlisea glabra
• Genlisea glandulosissima
• Genlisea guianensis
• Genlisea hispidula
• Genlisea margaretae
• Genlisea pallida
• Genlisea pygmaea
• Genlisea repens
• Genlisea roaraimensis
• Genlisea sanariapoana
• Genlisea stapfii
• Genlisea subglabra
• Genlisea taylorii

Subgenus Tayloria

• Genlisea lobata
• Genlisea uncinata
• Genlisea violacea

Genlisea repens

Genlisea violacea

Genlisea violacea (flower)

Genlisea pygmaea flower

[edit] References

• Płachno, B.J., M. Kozieradzka-Kiszkurno & P. Świątek 2007. Functional Ultrastructure of Genlisea (Lentibulariaceae) Digestive Hairs. Annals of Botany 100(2): 195–203. doi:10.1093/aob/mcm109

[edit] External links

• Photos of Genlisea
• The Carnivorous Plant SocietyFull Carnivorous plant list.

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