Carnivorous Pitcher Plants Lure Bats to Poo in Them with Sonar-Reflecting Leaves

It turns out that some plants have the ability to actually lure in bats for a little extra fertilizer. Scientists have found that carnivorous pitcher plants have a unique relationship with insectivorous bats; they give the bats a cool place to roost and the bats leave their droppings for the plants. More interestingly, though, is that the plants actually use ultrasonic calls to lure in the bats.

The researchers first came to the realization about the unique relationship after discovered bats roosting inside pitcher plants. This actually explains why the plant, Nepenthes hemsleyana, is relatively bad at luring in insects in comparison to other pitcher plants.

But how do the plants and the bats find one another in the first place? Both species are relatively rare and they live in a relatively crowded place. In order to find out how these plants and bats manage to locate one another, the researchers decided to use an artificial biomimetic bat head that emits and records ultrasounds to test the pitchers' acoustic reflectivity.

So what did they find? It turns out that the pitcher plants actually cause a strong echo reflection from their back walls. This allows the bats to better find the plants.

"Carnivorous plants in general have already solved the problem of nutrient deficiency in a very unusual way by reversing the 'normal system' of animals feeding on plants," said Michael Schoner, one of the researchers, in a news release. "It is even more astonishing that in the case of N. hemsleyana the system is taking a new turn. While N. hemsleyana reduced many insect-attracting traits, it obviously exhibits some traits that are highly attractive for a species that provides the plants with nutrients without being digested by the plant itself."

The findings are published in the journal Current Biology.

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