sundew

sundew
/sun"dooh', -dyooh'/, n.
any of several small, carnivorous bog plants of the genus Drosera, having sticky hairs that trap insects. Also called dew plant, rosa solis.
[1570-80; < D sondauw (cf. G Sonnentau), trans. of L ros solis dew of the sun]

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Any of about 100 species of annual and perennial flowering carnivorous plants in four genera, notably Drosera, that make up the family Droseraceae (sundew family).

Sundews are found throughout tropical and temperate regions. Their leaves are usually in a basal rosette. Both leaf surfaces are generally covered with sticky, gland-tipped hairs and sensitive tentacles that trap insects. After the trapped prey has been digested by enzymes secreted by the tentacles, the leaf reopens, resetting the trap. The best-known sundew is the Venus's-flytrap. See also pitcher plant.

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plant
      any plant of the genus Drosera, family Droseraceae, which contains about 100 annual and perennial species of flowering plants notable for their ability to trap insects. They are widely distributed in tropical and temperate regions.

 Drosera species, distributed worldwide but most abundantly in Australia, occur for the most part in wet, boggy places with a sandy acid soil; they are predominantly perennials. The small, nodding, five-petaled white or pinkish flowers are borne on one side of a curving stem, 10 to 25 cm (4 to 10 inches) tall, which rises from a rosette of usually basal leaves. The roundish, often reddish-stalked basal leaves, less than 2.5 cm (1 inch) in diameter, are covered with gland-tipped hairs that exude a sticky substance attractive to insects. Insects are captured by flexible stalked glands on the upper surface of the leaf, and eventually become engulfed by a web of sticky glands (see photograph—>). After the trapped prey has been digested by enzymes secreted by the tentacles, the leaf reopens, resetting the trap.

      The most common North American and West European sundew, D. rotundifolia, has small white or pinkish flowers 1.25 cm (0.5 inch) across or less. The round, flat leaf with purplish hairs narrows abruptly to a long fuzzy stalk. The fruit is spindle shaped.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Sundew — Sun dew , n. (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Drosera, low bog plants whose leaves are beset with pediceled glands which secrete a viscid fluid that glitters like dewdrops and attracts and detains insects. After an insect is caught, the glands curve …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • sundew — ► NOUN ▪ a small carnivorous plant of boggy places, with leaves bearing sticky hairs for trapping insects …   English terms dictionary

  • sundew — [sun′do͞o΄, sun′dyo͞o΄] n. [transl. of ML ros solis < L ros, dew (see RACE1) + solis, gen. of sol,SUN1] DROSERA adj. designating a family (Droseraceae, order Nepenthales) of dicotyledonous plants, including the Venus flytrap …   English World dictionary

  • Sundew — Taxobox name = Drosera image width = 250px image caption = Drosera tokaiensis regnum = Plantae divisio = Magnoliophyta classis = Magnoliopsida ordo = Caryophyllales familia = Droseraceae genus = Drosera genus authority = L. subdivision ranks =… …   Wikipedia

  • sundew — noun Date: 1578 any of a genus (Drosera of the family Droseraceae, the sundew family) of bog inhabiting insectivorous herbs having leaves covered with gland tipped adhesive hairs …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Sundew (dragline) — Sundew was a large electrically powered dragline excavator used in mining operations in Rutland and Northamptonshire in the United Kingdom.Built by Ransomes Rapier and named after the 1957 Grand National winner, it began work in a Rutland iron… …   Wikipedia

  • sundew plant — noun any of various bog plants of the genus Drosera having leaves covered with sticky hairs that trap and digest insects; cosmopolitan in distribution • Syn: ↑sundew, ↑daily dew • Hypernyms: ↑carnivorous plant • Member Holonyms: ↑Drosera, ↑genu …   Useful english dictionary

  • sundew — noun Any of a group of insectivorous plants that catch insects by sticky droplets ( dew ) at the end of hairs on the leafs. Most of these plants belong to the genus Drosera: these grow in boggy ground all over the world …   Wiktionary

  • sundew — noun a small carnivorous plant of boggy places, with leaves bearing sticky hairs for trapping insects. [Genus Drosera: several species.] …   English new terms dictionary

  • sundew — sun•dew [[t]ˈsʌnˌdu, ˌdyu[/t]] n. pln any of several small bog or aquatic plants, esp. of the genus Drosera[/ex] • Etymology: 1570–80 …   From formal English to slang

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