I have occasionally found slugs in S. purpurea pitchers in the bogs I visit
in SE Wisconsin. They do drown resulting in a really foul smelling
pitcher. I have noticed that when this happens most of the other
invertebrates that normally live inthe pitchers die leaving only a
microbial community consisting of bacteria and protozoa. Once in a while a
few of the midge larvae survive. They seem to tolerate the anoxic
conditions better than the mosquito larvae.
BTW For those of you who requested a bibliography of S. purpurea
inhabitants, I haven't forgotten. I've just been extremely busy teaching,
preparing manuscripts, and trying to coordinate my summer research plans.
I will send these out as soon as the school year ends in a couple of weeks.
Sorry for the delay.
Liane
Liane Cochran-Stafira
Dept. of Ecology and Evolution
The University of Chicago
1101 East 57th Street
Chicago, Illinois 60637-5415
phone: 312-702-1930
e-mail: lcochran@midway.uchicago.edu