Pink Spring. Red Catchfly, Silena dioica, Gaasperplaspark, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Even in snow you'll sometimes see pretty Catchfly. But now it's a cold Spring and there are many of these flowers in the shady areas of the Gaasperplaspark. I haven't yet seen any, though, with foam. That foam is secreted by the little hairs on the stems and foliage of female plants. It functions as a kind of flytrap. No, Catchfly doesn't 'eat' those insects. It is thought that the mechanism serves to protect forming seeds from predators.
Pink Spring. Red Catchfly, Silena dioica, Gaasperplaspark, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Even in snow you'll sometimes see pretty Catchfly. But now it's a cold Spring and there are many of these flowers in the shady areas of the Gaasperplaspark. I haven't yet seen any, though, with foam. That foam is secreted by the little hairs on the stems and foliage of female plants. It functions as a kind of flytrap. No, Catchfly doesn't 'eat' those insects. It is thought that the mechanism serves to protect forming seeds from predators.