IMG_7703_California pitcher plant aka cobra lily (Darlingtonia californica)
The California pitcher plant (Darlingtonia californica) aka cobra lily thrives in very specific conditions. It has adapted to nutrient-limited, high-nickel conditions found in serpentine seeps. This is why it has adapted to luring and trapping insects. Once the insect is inside, it is fooled by the translucent "false exits." When it gets tired, it falls deep into the pitcher where slick walls and downward-pointing hairs keep it trapped as enzymes secreted by the plant digest the proteins.
On the day Justin and I went to see these beautiful plants, it was quite warm -- 104F (40C), but there is a water table that is sufficifient for keeping the soil boggy even in the heat.
According to the USDA Forest Service website (www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/forb/darcal/all.html):
"[The] California pitcher plant is listed as threatened in the Family Lists of Candidate Endangered and Threatened Plant Species in the Continental United States (Smithsonian Institution 1975) [9]. It is also on List Four, Plants of Limited Distribution--A Watch List, of the California Native Plant Society."
IMG_7703_California pitcher plant aka cobra lily (Darlingtonia californica)
The California pitcher plant (Darlingtonia californica) aka cobra lily thrives in very specific conditions. It has adapted to nutrient-limited, high-nickel conditions found in serpentine seeps. This is why it has adapted to luring and trapping insects. Once the insect is inside, it is fooled by the translucent "false exits." When it gets tired, it falls deep into the pitcher where slick walls and downward-pointing hairs keep it trapped as enzymes secreted by the plant digest the proteins.
On the day Justin and I went to see these beautiful plants, it was quite warm -- 104F (40C), but there is a water table that is sufficifient for keeping the soil boggy even in the heat.
According to the USDA Forest Service website (www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/forb/darcal/all.html):
"[The] California pitcher plant is listed as threatened in the Family Lists of Candidate Endangered and Threatened Plant Species in the Continental United States (Smithsonian Institution 1975) [9]. It is also on List Four, Plants of Limited Distribution--A Watch List, of the California Native Plant Society."