carnivorous

John Slapcinsky, manager of the Florida Museum of Natural History’s invertebrate zoology collection, named nine new species of carnivorous land snails found in Papua New Guinea. Credit: Florida Museum photo by Jeff GageNine recently discovered species of meat-eating land snails have been identified in the secluded forests of Papua New Guinea, known for its rich variety of species. A recent research paper details these tiny creatures, each so small that all nine could collectively rest on a U.S. nickel. These snails offer…

A common, widespread fungus that's probably hiding in your garden soil right this moment is capable of transforming into a formidable predator when it gets too hungry.Scientists have known about the hunting abilities of Arthrobotrys oligospora since at least the 1980s, but they're still in the process of figuring out exactly how this otherwise peaceful fungus transforms into a worm's worst nightmare.Now, a research team from Taiwan and the US led by molecular biologist Hung-Che Lin from Academia Sinica in Taipei, has…

On a long walk in the summer of 1860, Charles Darwin first noticed a peculiar phenomenon among plants that still puzzles scientists to this day.On the English heathland, there was a common sundew (Drosera rotundifolia) with a whole bunch of insects stuck to its leaves.And that chance encounter started Darwin on a 16-year-long endeavor to prove that some plants could eat animals, dissolving their proteins with enzymes and absorbing the nutrients for growth.At first, even his wife had trouble believing him."At present, he…

Among the roughly 370,000 known species of flora sprouting on Earth's surface, a taste for blood is rare. But only one plant is known to be carnivorous on a part-time basis.Triphyophyllum peltatum is a rare plant from the tropical forests of Sierra Leone in West Africa known to trap insects from time to time. Until recently, researchers have had a hard time cultivating the plant successfully enough to determine just what triggers its sudden hunger for bug meat.Now researchers from Leibniz University Hannover and the…

Photograph of Pinguicula ombrophila sp. nov. Credit: Álvaro J. PérezA group of botanists from Ecuador, Germany, and the United States have identified two new distinct <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt" data-cmtooltip="<div class=glossaryItemTitle>species</div><div class=glossaryItemBody>A species is a group of living organisms that share a set of common characteristics and are able to breed and produce fertile offspring. The concept of a species is important in…

Some species of carnivorous pitcher plant, Nepenthes, have switched from capturing and digesting insects to absorbing animal poop for their daily dose of nutrients – and it's a switch that's proving very beneficial.These botanical poop eaters are managing to take in more nitrogen through their diet adaptation than other Nepenthes that snack on prey, scientists found. The difference is a considerable one, even though the new food regime doesn't sound all that appetizing.There are some important lessons here in terms of…

Carnivorous plants’ peculiar strategies for snagging live prey have long captured the public imagination. But even within this strange group, in which food-trapping mechanisms have evolved multiple times independently, some oddities stand out. For example, the visually striking pitcher plant Nepenthes gracilis, native to Southeast Asia, can harness falling rain’s energy to ambush animals. A new study in Biology Letters demonstrates how the structure of the plant’s pitcher component, itself a modified leaf, makes the…

Carnivorous plants like this sundew are found on every continent except Antarctica, but they only grow in very specific habitats.Photo: Lauren Leffer / GizmodoOn a recent reporting trip out West, I found myself surrounded by hundreds of vicious carnivores, all soaking their prey in a corrosive mix of flesh-eating enzymes. In a California bog, I stood in a field of carnivorous plants. The sticky sundews held their sparkling, modified leaves just an inch or so off the ground, digesting insects ensnared in their numerous…

As far as collectibles go, it’s hard to find something cooler than the skeleton of a long-dead apex predator. The latest to hit the auction block is a Gorgosaurus, a distant relative of T-rex, which will be offered for sale by Sotheby’s New York this month as the headline act for its Natural History sale.Although pretty much any carnivorous dinosaur is going to be compared to the Tyrannosaurus rex, Gorgosaurus was separated by about 10 million years of evolution and several branches of the family tree. It dates back about…

Meraxes gigas, a newly discovered species of dinosaur with disproportionally short arms just like T. rex. Credit: Jorge A GonzalezMeraxes gigas — a new species of dinosaur has been discovered with disproportionally short arms just like T. rex called the Meraxes gigas.Tyrannosaurs (like the infamous T. rex) is not the only group of gigantic carnivorous dinosaur with tiny arms. In fact, paleontologists have just discovered a new species of dinosaur with disproportionally short arms just like T. rex called the Meraxes gigas.…