Heliotropism ** is one intelligent way to manage their food source but some carnivorous plants have evolved to devour living prey, yet do so in a way that still allows these bugs to pollinate them. “Predatory, carnivorous, competitive and as self sacrificing as their animal neighbors.
A vegan’s worst nightmare!” So What are the plants saying? A Lovely and rather long philosophical UTube production!
Plants often warn others of their species when danger is near. Humans, often do not.
Instead of one brain, their root apexes work together in one complex network and often share micro-organisms with other trees, making them truly a joined community instead of a green ‘Island’ standing alone. Some of this actually can be called bio-warfare as the plant can manufacture chemicals to ward off insect attacks.
They also create symbiotic alliances with some insects to protect them. If the plant is attacked, their ‘hommies’ rush to defend them. If they do not they lose their home and food source.
Some mushrooms create and manipulate their own atmosphere, releasing their moisture for their offspring when needed..so they may live…but it means dehydration and death for the self-sacrificing mother mushroom…..i would call that a decision made at a precise time, with a lot of self-sacrifice….that’s far more then a lot of humans would do.
Cut off some leaf appendages and a Kirlian photograph will still show an intact aura of an unmutilated leaf. Worse yet, hooked up to electrical monitors some plants would ‘react’ when the same Edward Scissorhand researcher entered the room.
“A very well-known Kirlian photography experiment documents a leaf as it slowly dies. The initial photograph was taken when the leaf was freshly cut and shows a prominent glow. As the leaf gets older more photos are taken, which show that the glow is starting to weaken. This was once explained away with the life-force theory. However, we now know that the weakening of the glow is simply a result of the leaf losing water and drying up over time.” by Rachael Towne
Ivy Leaf Picture by nebarnix, on Flickr
Enjoy, and now I must get back to the chopping and dicing of the hemoglobin impaired.
(C) Herb Senft 2015
** On Heliotropic twist. I had always wondered about the fate of Alaskan Sunflowers who would literally twist their heads off following the Alaskan sun.
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