Roridula gorgonias

Roridula gorgonias
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Ericales
Family:	Roridulaceae
Genus:	Roridula
Species:	R. gorgonias
Binomial name
Roridula gorgonias Planch. (1848)
Synonyms
Roridula brachysepala Gdgr. (1913) [=R. dentata/R. gorgonias] Roridula crinita Gdgr. (1913)

Roridula gorgonias is a protocarnivorous plant native to the Cape Provinces of South Africa.^[1] Like other species of Roridula, the plant secretes mucilage to trap insects, but does not directly digest them. Instead, it forms a mutualistic relationship with assassin bugs, whereby the assassin bugs eat the trapped insects and the plant gains nutrients from their droppings.

References

1. Millington, Andrew; Blumler, Mark; Schickhoff, Udo (2011). The SAGE Handbook of Biogeography. SAGE Publications. pp. 143–. ISBN 978-1-4462-5445-5. Retrieved 2013-08-07. The Cape Floristic Region in South Africa is comparatively rich in endemic flowering-plant families. Five families of angiosperms (Penaeaceae, Roridulaceae, Geissolomataceae, Grubbiaceae, and Lanariaceae) are endemic to that region ...