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Rapid plant movement

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Rapid plant movement

Rapid plant movement encompasses movement in plant structures occurring over a very short period, usually under one second. For example, the Venus flytrap closes its trap in about 100 milliseconds. The dogwood bunchberry's flower opens its petals and fires pollen in less than 0.5 milliseconds. The record is currently held by the white mulberry tree, with flower movement taking 25 microseconds, as pollen is catapulted from the stamens at velocities in excess of half the speed of sound—near the theoretical physical limits for movements in plants.

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These rapid plant movements differ from the more common, but much slower "growth-movements" of plants, called tropisms.

In 1880 Charles Darwin published The Power of Movement in Plants, his last work before his death.

Plants that capture and consume prey

  • Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula)
  • Waterwheel plant (Aldrovanda vesiculosa)
  • Bladderwort (Utricularia)
  • Certain varieties of sundew (Drosera)
  • Plants that move leaves for other reasons

  • Sensitive plant (Mimosa pudica)
  • Catclaw brier (Mimosa nuttallii)
  • Mimosa uruguensis [1]
  • Eastern sensitive plant, sensitive briar (Mimosa rupertiana)[2]
  • Roemer sensitive briar (Mimosa roemeriana)
  • Giant sensitive plant (Mimosa pigra)[3]
  • Giant false sensitive plant (Mimosa diplotricha)
  • Telegraph plant (Codariocalyx motorius)
  • Partridge pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata)
  • Sensitive partridge pea (Chamaecrista nictitans)
  • Yellow neptunia (Neptunia lutea)
  • Sensitive neptunia (Neptunia oleracea)
  • Large leaf sensitive plant (Aeschynomene fluitans)
  • Plants that spread seeds or pollen by rapid movement

  • Squirting cucumber (Ecballium agreste)
  • Cardamine hirsuta and other Cardamine spp. have seed pods which explode when touched.
  • Impatiens (Impatiens)
  • Sandbox tree
  • Triggerplant (all Stylidium species)
  • Canadian dwarf cornel (aka dogwood bunchberry, Cornus canadensis)
  • White mulberry (Morus alba)
  • Orchid (all Catasetum genus)
  • Dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium)
  • Witch-hazel (Hamamelis)
  • Some Fabaceae have beans that twist as they dry out, putting tension on the seam, which at some point will split suddenly and violently, spraying the seeds metres from the maternal plant.
  • Marantaceae
  • Minnieroot (Ruellia tuberosa)
  • References

    Rapid plant movement Wikipedia


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