Re: squiggly things in Sarracenia
Liane Cochran-Stafira (lcochran@midway.uchicago.edu)
Mon, 25 Mar 1996 12:54:13 -0600 (CST)
Hi Steve - If they are very small and thin, they are probably pupae of the
pitcher plant midge Metriocnemus knabi (see my post of about a week ago
about the critters that live in S. purpurea pitchers). If they are fatter
and longer (say total length of about 5 mm) they are probably pupae of the
pitcher plant mosquito Wyeomyia smithii. Either way, don't worry about
them. They are normal inhabitants of the pitcher fluid and the larvae that
will result from their mating and subsequent egg laying are beneficial to
the plants in terms of helping to break down captured prey.
Liane Cochran-Stafira
>Hi all:
>
>I just observed something different inside the pitcher of a Sarracenia
>Purpurea (serious posting this time). There are a bunch of little
>squiggly things, that look like hypens, swimming around on the surface
>of the water inside the a pitcher. They are about the size of a
>pin head. I was told these will not cause a problem for the plant.
>What are they, and will they cause a problem for me or other plants in the
>greenhouse?
>
>---Steve