Roridula is a
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland, while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South Africa.Modern...
n genus of
plantPlants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. They include familiar organisms such as trees, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The scientific study of plants, known as botany, has identified about 350,000 extant species of plants, defined as seed plants,...
s that, whilst having many of the adaptations of a
carnivorous plantCarnivorous 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...
, such as the possession of
insectInsects are arthropods, having a hard exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae. They are the most diverse group of animals on the planet and include more than a million species that are already described. Insects represent more than half of all...
-trapping sticky hairs, does not directly digest the
animalAnimals are a major group of mostly multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously...
s it traps. Instead, it has a
mutualisticMutualism is a biological interaction between two organisms, where each individual derives a fitness benefit . Similar interactions within a species are known as co-operation...
relationship with
Pameridea roridulae, a species of capsid bug, which lives on the plant and feeds on the trapped insects. The plant obtains nutrients from the droppings of this
symbioticThe term symbosis commonly describes close and often long-term interactions between different biological species...
insect.
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Roridula is a
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland, while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South Africa.Modern...
n genus of
plantPlants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. They include familiar organisms such as trees, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The scientific study of plants, known as botany, has identified about 350,000 extant species of plants, defined as seed plants,...
s that, whilst having many of the adaptations of a
carnivorous plantCarnivorous 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...
, such as the possession of
insectInsects are arthropods, having a hard exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae. They are the most diverse group of animals on the planet and include more than a million species that are already described. Insects represent more than half of all...
-trapping sticky hairs, does not directly digest the
animalAnimals are a major group of mostly multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously...
s it traps. Instead, it has a
mutualisticMutualism is a biological interaction between two organisms, where each individual derives a fitness benefit . Similar interactions within a species are known as co-operation...
relationship with
Pameridea roridulae, a species of capsid bug, which lives on the plant and feeds on the trapped insects. The plant obtains nutrients from the droppings of this
symbioticThe term symbosis commonly describes close and often long-term interactions between different biological species...
insect. Whether this plant is regarded as carnivorous or
protocarnivorousA protocarnivorous plant , according to some definitions, traps and kills insects or other animals but lacks the ability to either directly digest or absorb nutrients from its prey like a carnivorous plant...
is essentially a matter of semantics. The genus contains just two species,
Roridula gorgoniasRoridula gorgonias is a protocarnivorous plant native to South Africa....
Planch. and
Roridula dentataRoridula dentata is a protocarnivorous plant native to South Africa.It can be found only in the hotter and more arid inland at the mountains of Clanwilliam and Tulbagh' Ceres and can grow up to more than 150 cm. The leaves are covered with sticky hairs and produce a glue, enabling it to catch...
L., and is the only genus in the family Roridulaceae.
Misassigned taxa
- Roridula arabica Roem. & Schult. (1818) [=Cleome droserifolia]
- Roridula droserifolia (Delile) Forsk. (1775) [=Cleome droserifolia]
- Roridula tetrandra Vitm. (1790) [=Cleome droserifolia]
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