Genlisea
Encyclopedia
Genlisea is a genus
of carnivorous plant
s also known as corkscrew plants. The 21 species grow in wet terrestrial to semi-aquatic environments distributed throughout Africa
and Central
and South America
. The plants use highly modified underground leaves to attract, trap and digest minute microfaunaca, particularly protozoans. Although suggested a century earlier by Charles Darwin
, carnivory in the genus was not proven until 1998.
The generic
name Genlisea honors the late Stéphanie Félicité Ducrest de St-Albin, comtesse de Genlis
, a French
writer and educator.
Two members of the genus, G. margaretae
and G. aurea
, possess the smallest and second smallest known genome
s of all flowering plants.
Genlisea are small herbs
, growing from a slender rhizome
and bearing two morphologically distinct leaf types - photosynthetic
foliage leaves aboveground and highly modified subterranean leaves used to trap prey. The plants lack root
s, although the subterranean traps perform many of the functions, such as anchorage and water absorption, normally performed by roots.
Several to many flowers are held by a slender, erect, and often tall inflorescence
. As in other members of the bladderwort family
, the corolla is fused into a bilobed tube tapering to a spur, with the lower lip of the corolla having three lobes. The calyx is five-lobed, in contrast to Utricularia's three-lobed calyx. Corolla colors are generally yellow or violet to mauve, although a few species are white or cream.
The foliage leaves grow in a hemisphere around the growth point
. Depending on species, these leaves are linear
to spatulate
in shape and 0.5–5 cm (¼–2 in) in length.
The subterranean traps are white, lacking chlorophyll
or any other pigment
ation. They consist of a cylindrical stalk, widening at some distance below the surface into a hollow bulb-like utricle, and continuing as a hollow cylinder some further distance. At this point the stalk bifurcates into two furrowed spirals, between which the cylinder opening acts as the trap entrance. The furrows of the spiraled trap arms are lined with hairs pointing inward and toward the bifurcation. The hollow cylinder section leading from the bifurcation to the utricle is likewise lined with upward-pointing curved hairs. Some species produce two trap forms, one shorter and one longer, which probably target different prey groups.
Intraspecific determination depends almost wholly upon the inflorescence
, particularly upon the indumentum
.
, who in 1833 described four species: G. aurea
, G. filiformis, G. pygmaea
, and G. violacea
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of carnivorous plant
Carnivorous plant
Carnivorous plants are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients from trapping and consuming animals or protozoans, typically insects and other arthropods. Carnivorous plants appear adapted to grow in places where the soil is thin or poor in nutrients, especially nitrogen, such as acidic...
s also known as corkscrew plants. The 21 species grow in wet terrestrial to semi-aquatic environments distributed throughout Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and Central
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. The plants use highly modified underground leaves to attract, trap and digest minute microfaunaca, particularly protozoans. Although suggested a century earlier by Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
, carnivory in the genus was not proven until 1998.
The generic
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
name Genlisea honors the late Stéphanie Félicité Ducrest de St-Albin, comtesse de Genlis
Stéphanie Félicité Ducrest de St-Albin, comtesse de Genlis
Madame de Genlis, full name Stéphanie Félicité Ducrest de St-Aubin, comtesse de Genlis, or Madame Brûlart, was a French writer, harpist and educator.-Biography:...
, a French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
writer and educator.
Two members of the genus, G. margaretae
Genlisea margaretae
Genlisea margaretae is a carnivorous species in the genus Genlisea native to areas of Madagascar, Tanzania, and Zambia. It has pale bundles of root-like organs up to about 20 cm long under ground that attract, trap, and digest protozoans. These organs are subterranean leaves, which lack chlorophyll...
and G. aurea
Genlisea aurea
Genlisea aurea is one of the largest carnivorous species in the genus Genlisea . It has pale bundles of root-like organs up to about 15 cm long under ground that attract, trap, and digest protozoans. These organs are subterranean leaves, which lack chlorophyll. G. aurea is endemic to Brazil, where...
, possess the smallest and second smallest known genome
Genome
In modern molecular biology and genetics, the genome is the entirety of an organism's hereditary information. It is encoded either in DNA or, for many types of virus, in RNA. The genome includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of the DNA/RNA....
s of all flowering plants.
Description
Herbaceous plant
A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...
, growing from a slender rhizome
Rhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
and bearing two morphologically distinct leaf types - photosynthetic
Photosynthesis
Photosynthesis is a chemical process that converts carbon dioxide into organic compounds, especially sugars, using the energy from sunlight. Photosynthesis occurs in plants, algae, and many species of bacteria, but not in archaea. Photosynthetic organisms are called photoautotrophs, since they can...
foliage leaves aboveground and highly modified subterranean leaves used to trap prey. The plants lack root
Root
In vascular plants, the root is the organ of a plant that typically lies below the surface of the soil. This is not always the case, however, since a root can also be aerial or aerating . Furthermore, a stem normally occurring below ground is not exceptional either...
s, although the subterranean traps perform many of the functions, such as anchorage and water absorption, normally performed by roots.
Several to many flowers are held by a slender, erect, and often tall inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
. As in other members of the bladderwort family
Lentibulariaceae
Lentibulariaceae is a family of carnivorous plants containing three genera, Genlisea, the corkscrew plants, Pinguicula, the butterworts, and Utricularia, the bladderworts....
, the corolla is fused into a bilobed tube tapering to a spur, with the lower lip of the corolla having three lobes. The calyx is five-lobed, in contrast to Utricularia's three-lobed calyx. Corolla colors are generally yellow or violet to mauve, although a few species are white or cream.
The foliage leaves grow in a hemisphere around the growth point
Growth point
A Growth Point is a rural village or small town in Zimbabwe. The term is applied by the Zimbabwe Government for certain designated villages or small towns. Growth Points are almost always located in a communal land , and usually there is only one Growth Point per communal land...
. Depending on species, these leaves are linear
Leaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...
to spatulate
Leaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...
in shape and 0.5–5 cm (¼–2 in) in length.
The subterranean traps are white, lacking chlorophyll
Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll is a green pigment found in almost all plants, algae, and cyanobacteria. Its name is derived from the Greek words χλωρος, chloros and φύλλον, phyllon . Chlorophyll is an extremely important biomolecule, critical in photosynthesis, which allows plants to obtain energy from light...
or any other pigment
Pigment
A pigment is a material that changes the color of reflected or transmitted light as the result of wavelength-selective absorption. This physical process differs from fluorescence, phosphorescence, and other forms of luminescence, in which a material emits light.Many materials selectively absorb...
ation. They consist of a cylindrical stalk, widening at some distance below the surface into a hollow bulb-like utricle, and continuing as a hollow cylinder some further distance. At this point the stalk bifurcates into two furrowed spirals, between which the cylinder opening acts as the trap entrance. The furrows of the spiraled trap arms are lined with hairs pointing inward and toward the bifurcation. The hollow cylinder section leading from the bifurcation to the utricle is likewise lined with upward-pointing curved hairs. Some species produce two trap forms, one shorter and one longer, which probably target different prey groups.
Taxonomy
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
, particularly upon the indumentum
Indumentum
The indumentum is a covering of fine hairs or bristles on a plant or insect.In plants, the indumentum types are:*pubescent*hirsute*pilose*villous*tomentose*stellate*scabrous*scurfy...
.
| Species | Subgenus | Distribution | Species | Subgenus | Distribution | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G. africana | Genlisea | Africa | G. pallida | Genlisea | Africa | |
| G. angolensis | Genlisea | Africa | G. pygmaea Genlisea pygmaea Genlisea pygmaea is a corkscrew plant native to South America.... |
Genlisea | South America | |
| G. aurea Genlisea aurea Genlisea aurea is one of the largest carnivorous species in the genus Genlisea . It has pale bundles of root-like organs up to about 15 cm long under ground that attract, trap, and digest protozoans. These organs are subterranean leaves, which lack chlorophyll. G. aurea is endemic to Brazil, where... |
Genlisea | South America | G. repens Genlisea repens Genlisea repens is a corkscrew plant native to South America.... |
Genlisea | South America | |
| G. barthlottii | Genlisea | Africa | G. roraimensis | Genlisea | South America | |
| G. filiformis | Genlisea | Africa | G. sanariapoana | Genlisea | South America | |
| G. glabra | Genlisea | South America | G. stapfii | Genlisea | Africa | |
| G. glandulosissima | Genlisea | Africa | G. subglabra Genlisea subglabra Genlisea subglabra is a corkscrew plant native to Africa.... |
Genlisea | Africa | |
| G. guianensis | Genlisea | South America | G. taylorii | Genlisea | Africa | |
| G. hispidula Genlisea hispidula Genlisea hispidula is a corkscrew plant native to Africa.... |
Genlisea | Africa | G. uncinata | Tayloria | South America | |
| G. lobata Genlisea lobata Genlisea lobata is a corkscrew plant native to Brazil.... |
Tayloria | South America | G. violacea Genlisea violacea Genlisea violacea is a corkscrew plant native to South America.... |
Tayloria | South America | |
| G. margaretae Genlisea margaretae Genlisea margaretae is a carnivorous species in the genus Genlisea native to areas of Madagascar, Tanzania, and Zambia. It has pale bundles of root-like organs up to about 20 cm long under ground that attract, trap, and digest protozoans. These organs are subterranean leaves, which lack chlorophyll... |
Genlisea | Africa, Madagascar |
Botanical history
The genus was discovered by Augustin François César Prouvençal de Saint-HilaireAugustin Saint-Hilaire
Augustin François César Prouvençal de Saint-Hilaire , French botanist and traveler, was born at Orléans, France, on 4 October 1779. He began to publish memoirs on botanical subjects at an early age...
, who in 1833 described four species: G. aurea
Genlisea aurea
Genlisea aurea is one of the largest carnivorous species in the genus Genlisea . It has pale bundles of root-like organs up to about 15 cm long under ground that attract, trap, and digest protozoans. These organs are subterranean leaves, which lack chlorophyll. G. aurea is endemic to Brazil, where...
, G. filiformis, G. pygmaea
Genlisea pygmaea
Genlisea pygmaea is a corkscrew plant native to South America....
, and G. violacea
Genlisea violacea
Genlisea violacea is a corkscrew plant native to South America....
.
External links
- The Carnivorous Plant Society Full Carnivorous plant list.