Stylidium

Stylidium (also known as triggerplants or trigger plants) is a genus of dicotyledonous plants that belong to the family Stylidiaceae. The genus name Stylidium is derived from the Greek στύλος or stylos (column or pillar), which refers to the distinctive reproductive structure that its flowers possess.

Pollination is achieved through the use of the sensitive "trigger", which comprises the male and female reproductive organs fused into a floral column that snaps forward quickly in response to touch, harmlessly covering the insect in pollen.

Most of the approximately 300 species are only found in Australia, making it the fifth largest genus in that country.

Triggerplants are considered to be protocarnivorous or carnivorous because the glandular trichomes that cover the scape and flower can trap, kill, and digest small insects with protease enzymes produced by the plant.

The majority of the Stylidium species are perennial herbs of which some are geophytes that utilize bulbs as their storage organ. The remaining small group of species consists of ephemeral annuals.

Members of the genus are most easily identified by their unique floral column, in which the stamen and style are fused. The column—also commonly called a "trigger" in this genus—typically resides beneath the plane of the flower.

Stylidium flowers are zygomorphic, which means they are only symmetrical in one plane. Flowers usually bloom in the late spring in Australia.



Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stylidium



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