About the episode
A plant grows in the rainforest of West Africa that seems quite harmless at first glance. Okay, the stump can grow an impressive 60 meters in height, but above that the plant simply does what the average other plant does.
Except… if there is a shortage of phosphate during the dry season. Then suddenly a few killer leaves grow. Those leaves are extremely sticky and form a handy insect trap. If an unfortunate animal lands on it, it will also have to deal with digesting proteins that ooze from the glands in the leaf, causing it to be devoured within a considerable time.
It took a while for scientists to figure out this trick. The plant is difficult to study in the wild and even more difficult to grow in the lab. The latter was ultimately successful and they were able to see in what circumstances the plant developed murderous tendencies.
If there is sufficient phosphate in the soil again, normal pleasant leaves will grow from the plant again.
Read more about the research here: Plantwatch: why does a rainforest vine turn into a part-time carnivore?
