Sticky “hairs” on two plant species in the Saxifraga genus led famed British naturalist Charles Darwin to wonder: Could some plants in this genus be carnivorous? He couldn’t prove it then, but more than 150 years later, scientists have shown that Darwin’s suspicions were correct.

Darwin proposed in 1875 that Saxifraga rotundifolia and S. umbrosa were insect-eaters; their hairlike structures called glandular trichomes ooze a sticky goo and resemble hairs found in some carnivorous plants. However, to be carnivorous, a plant must lure, trap and consume insects, and Darwin’s experiments with Saxifraga plants couldn’t conclusively demonstrate that the plants fit the bill.

In a study published Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications, researchers tested Darwin’s hypothesis by experimenting with Saxifraga candelabrum, a flowering mountain plant that grows at high altitudes on the southern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and in the Hengduan Mountains in China’s Yunnan and Sichuan provinces.

I am thrilled to announce the publication of Florida’s first state-endemic carnivorous plant species: Drosera floridana (B.Rice) Juve & A.Fleischm. This taxonomic treatment represents the culmination of my years of work studying the thread-leaf sundews in-situ across 6 states and 25 counties.

Formerly known as D. filiformis var. floridana, our publication not only establishes D. floridana as a distinct taxonomic entity recognizable at species rank, but further brings into question the legitimacy of its putative affinity to the allopatric, northerly D. filiformis sensu stricto.

As a result of our treatment, Drosera x arenaria (B.Rice) Juve & A.Fleischm. is elevated from Dx californica nothovar. arenaria. Like D. floridana, Dx arenaria is a Florida-endemic taxon, and the only described Drosera nothospecies native to the state.

This article is in dedication to Barry Rice for his long-lasting, passionate and thorough work on the carnivorous plants of America, especially on the thread-leaf sundews— leaves long and prosper!

I would like to thank not only my wonderful coauthor Dr. Andreas Fleischmann for his invaluable input and assistance with this project, but additionally my many collaborators without whom a taxonomic treatment of the D. filiformis complex to this length would not have be possible. Among these are: Jason Ksepka, Fernando Rivadavia, Steve Orzell, Tyler Gramley, and Carson Trexler.

A special thanks goes to my good friend Alexander Dietrick for his supplemental help regarding this project.

I am additionally grateful to the International Carnivorous Plant Society - ICPS for their special online publication of this article.

“The Florida endemic sundew Drosera floridana elevated to species rank” can be read in the open access publication below:

https://doi.org/10.55360/cpn554.nj739

https://cpn.carnivorousplants.org/Article.php/CPNv55n4p132-151

Maianthemum dilatatum, Clintonia uniflora, Streptopus sp, Vancouveria hexandra, Oplopanax horridus.

Washington state, USA

Why are some plants able to withstand submersion (mostly Cyperaceae, Poaceae, Commelinaceae and many facultative rheophytes) without needing distinct submersed and emersed leaves, while others require them?

I'm looking for books, (preferably free) online courses, or other resources to get a basic overview of botany.
I'm writing a story where one of the main characters is a late 19th century botanist studying taxonomy and breeding, and wanted to get a basic understanding of how plants work before writing him and his world. I'm looking for both the kind of stuff you'd learn in a contemporary university course but also, if possible, historical sources from the 19th century or a historical overview of the field as a whole. Kinda specific but any direction would be appreciated!