Sundews are carnivorous plants which trap and digest insects as a nutrient supplement.
Glands on the leaf hairs secrete a sticky acidic fluid.
When an insect lands on the leaf it sticks to the hairs, stimulating them to bend slowly toward the centre of the leaf and press the insect against the leaf surface, where it is digested and the nutrients are absorbed by the leaf.
The sticky, round droplets and reddish colour of the plant give it the common name of “sundew”.
Spatulate-leaved sundew is usually in the wettest parts of bogs and on sandy shores subject to periodic inundation.
The flowering stalks are 7 – 35 cm tall.
The flowers are 5 -7 mm wide with 5 petals.
The plant blooms from June – August.
More photos:
Miles Hearn