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SUMMARY:The Inaugural Henslow Fellow Lectures - Turning the tables in plan
 t-animal interactions: the tricks and traps of insect-eating pitcher plant
 s - Dr Ulrike Bauer\, Department of Plant Sciences
DTSTART:20130424T170000Z
DTEND:20130424T173000Z
UID:TALK43946@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Beverley Larner
DESCRIPTION:Interactions between plants and animals have shaped all ecosys
 tems. The evolutionary arms race between herbivores and plants has led to 
 astounding adaptations on both sides. Some plants have even managed to “
 turn the tables” and prey upon animals for food. The leaves of the Asian
  pitcher plant (Nepenthes) form elaborate pitfall traps that rely on speci
 alised slippery surfaces to capture (mostly) arthropods. The prey drowns i
 n the fluid-filled bottom of the trap and gets digested by the plant’s e
 nzymes. This basic principle has been modified by evolution in numerous wa
 ys\, and a diversity of trapping mechanisms and nutrient acquisition strat
 egies can be found across the genus Nepenthes. On the other hand\, converg
 ent evolution has led to a strikingly similar trap design in the unrelated
  American pitcher plants (Sarraceniaceae). In my lecture\, I will introduc
 e you to the often bizarre trapping mechanisms of these fascinating plants
 \, and give you some insight in the joys and challenges of conducting ecol
 ogical and biomechanical experiments in a tropical field environment.
LOCATION:Bristol-Myers-Squibb Lecture theatre\, Department of Chemistry
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