Rare Carnivorous Plant Rediscovered In Northern Wisconsin

A group of volunteers for the DNR of Wisconsin were kayaking in Ashland County when they discovered the rare English Sundew plant. It has been 40 years since this rare carnivorous plant had been seen in Northern Wisconsin, said a representative from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

The DNR made contact with a professor at Northland College in Ashland who set out in a canoe with some students to identify and confirm if this was the insect eating plant. The English Sundew (Drosera Anglica) which is one of 15 different carnivorous plant species in Wisconsin. Growing up in the Badger State I have never heard of such a thing in my life, but obviously i was never canoeing or kayaking in an area where this species is found which is found in fens or bogs. According to Wikipedia "A fen is one of the main types of wetlands, the others being grassy marshes, forested swamps, and peaty bogs."

This particular plant has stalked glands across it's leaves it's sticky glands emit a sweet secretion that attracts small insects which then become stuck to the leaf. According to FOX9 a report states what happens once the insect becomes stuck on the leaf.  "Soon more glands bend toward the ensnared prey, and the entire leaf curls around it, more like a boa constrictor than a plant. Eventually the insect dies from exhaustion or asphyxiation."

The rare plant monitoring program trains and sends volunteers out into the field to check on rare native plant populations. Over the last year this group has discovered 59 never before seen rare plants in Wisconsin.