Which plant family includes the Venus flytrap and sundews?
Answer
Droseraceae
Droseraceae is the plant family that includes the Venus flytrap and sundews.
The family contains the genera Dionaea, Drosera, and Aldrovanda. Dionaea muscipula is the Venus flytrap, while Drosera species are commonly called sundews and use sticky glandular hairs to capture small animals.
These plants live in nutrient-poor soils, so their carnivory supplements nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus. They still obtain most of their energy through photosynthesis, like other green plants.
The family is often confused with other carnivorous plant families. Pitcher plants such as Nepenthes belong to Nepenthaceae, bladderworts belong to Lentibulariaceae, and North American pitcher plants belong mainly to Sarraceniaceae. Carnivory evolved independently in several of these lineages.