Corkscrew Plants (Genlisea)

Quick Facts 

Name: Corkscrew plants 

Diet: Minute microfauna, especially protozoa (single-celled organisms) 

Behaviour: Usually perennial (active all year) but some are annual (complete a life cycle in a single growing season) 

Lifespan: Unknown 

Size: Small surface leaves 0.5 - 5cm in length and specialised underground leaves up to 20cm in length 

Habitat/Range: Wet terrestrial and semi-aquatic habitats in Sub-Saharan Africa, Central America, and South America 

Threats: There are no specific threats associated with the Genus as a whole. Of the two threatened species, Genlisea barthlotti is threatened by mining activity and invasive species. Genlisea angolensis is threatened by water pollution, mining activity, and droughts 

Conservation Status: Two species, Genlisea barthlotti and Genlisea angolensis are listed as vulnerable and endangered respectively  

Names & Nicknames: Genlisea or Corkscrew plants

Size: With some species having leaves smaller than your pinky nail, these plants are easy to miss! However, you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Though tiny on the outside, corkscrew plants have a pretty impressive underground aesthetic – they use subterranean leaves instead of roots. Total size on their best days? Up to 20cm in length.

Favourite Hangout: Hot, damp, and nutrient-poor – just like a rave in Ibiza. Being found across tropical Africa and Central and South America, corkscrew plants love nothing more than a nice peaty wetland or sandy bog.

Favourite Snack: No meal is too small. Instead of eating insects like its more well-known carnivorous cousins, corkscrews have an appetite for protozoans. AKA. tiny single-celled organisms, the most famous of which is a yummy amoeba.

If you see them: You have a keen eye – they're tiny, and on the surface, they look like a pretty run-of-the-mill plant. It’s only once you get below the soil that you would be able to see their specialised root-like traps, which they use to capture their prey.

How do we harm them: Not a lot is known about corkscrew plants and how we harm them, but there are a couple of African species that are threatened due to increased mining activities that destroy their habitats and poison water supplies.

Eating Habits: The long tubular traps of corkscrew plants are often known as ‘lobster traps’ because they work in a very similar way! When an unsuspecting protozoan snack oozes its way into the trap, it passes a series of inward-pointing hairs that easily let it past but won't let it out. Game over. It's then soaked in a concoction of digestive enzymes so the plant can slurp up all those yummy nutrients.

Fact: Charles Darwin first proposed that Corkscrews were carnivores in his 1875 book, ‘Insectivorous Plants’. However, it wasn't until over 100 years later, in 1998, that this was proven, and Corkscews could officially take their place as a carnivorous plant!

Who are they in the friendship group: They look very sweet and innocent on the outside, but you can’t help but think they are hiding something….

How threatened are they: This is largely unknown, but out of the roughly 30 species, one is listed as vulnerable and one species as endangered