FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Parker is completely correct, that is the function that pigments as the red anthocianins, yellow carotenoids, and such other color pigments are made, that is a mechanism the plant has to absorb the extra electrons that light makes activated in the chlorophil using their energy as a fluorescense returning light or as heat excess, to protect the DNA and other important molecules in the cell, it is a protection indeed. But the plant may use it for many other purposes as the flowers, fruits or attraction. Also trees sometimes make their new forming fleshy leaves in that color for protection until they have grown enough to get their mechanics working.
Depends completely on the plant type and part of the plant that uses them for their function.

coline wrote:Parker is completely correct, that is the function that pigments as the red anthocianins, yellow carotenoids, and such other color pigments are made, that is a mechanism the plant has to absorb the extra electrons that light makes activated in the chlorophil using their energy as a fluorescense returning light or as heat excess, to protect the DNA and other important molecules in the cell, it is a protection indeed. But the plant may use it for many other purposes as the flowers, fruits or attraction. Also trees sometimes make their new forming fleshy leaves in that color for protection until they have grown enough to get their mechanics working.
Depends completely on the plant type and part of the plant that uses them for their function.

I doubt it's or attraction. It just looks attractive so people seem to think that it's to attract insects. I think that rumor started before people really learned all the ways to get the plants to color up.

Yes me too, because insects do not see red, well at least bees, so the trap should really look black or somehow, so I did not say that, but something has to be behind the color, something that really lures the insects somehow, other than nectar, some reason has that the color is there, maybe helping that other function.

coline wrote:Yes me too, because insects do not see red, well at least bees, so the trap should really look black or somehow, so I did not say that, but something has to be behind the color, something that really lures the insects somehow, other than nectar, some reason has that the color is there, maybe helping that other function.

THe color is there when nitrogen is low and the lighting is sufficient. It's a fact.

Yes, that is the fact observed anr proved by us all, the specific reason to why does the plant phisiolgocically reacts in that way is the unknown situation.

coline wrote:Yes, that is the fact observed anr proved by us all, the specific reason to why does the plant phisiolgocically reacts in that way is the unknown situation.

They do it to filter out the sun so they don't get harmed by it. I can't tell if you're looking for more reasons but all of the reasons have been stated.

Yes they filter the sun, but then, why a trap that has a big nitrogen input is green, even when fully open and exposed to the sun, why does the trap not produce red pigmentation to get protected when in that situation, that is what I say

coline wrote:Yes they filter the sun, but then, why a trap that has a big nitrogen input is green, even when fully open and exposed to the sun, why does the trap not produce red pigmentation to get protected when in that situation, that is what I say

That clears it up, thanks. They don't do it because they have so much nitrogen in them they show the green more than the red. That's why some of them still have some red on them, but not a lot.

coline wrote:Yes they filter the sun, but then, why a trap that has a big nitrogen input is green, even when fully open and exposed to the sun, why does the trap not produce red pigmentation to get protected when in that situation, that is what I say

Ditto, my thoughts exactly.

Here's two well fed JAWS specimens from last summer under sun light



Here's a small LOW GIANT from last summer under natural light

Another small LOW GIANT wintered indoors under UV, no food


Just to confuse everybody and myself, here is an enormous PARADISIA I received from Steve in New Mexico and some baby PARADISIA, which were not sun hardened, I received from Matt. Small stayed inside under artificial light and turned completely green, the large one went outside and turned completely green

Chas wrote:

coline wrote:Parker is completely correct, that is the function that pigments as the red anthocianins, yellow carotenoids, and such other color pigments are made, that is a mechanism the plant has to absorb the extra electrons that light makes activated in the chlorophil using their energy as a fluorescense returning light or as heat excess, to protect the DNA and other important molecules in the cell, it is a protection indeed. But the plant may use it for many other purposes as the flowers, fruits or attraction. Also trees sometimes make their new forming fleshy leaves in that color for protection until they have grown enough to get their mechanics working.
Depends completely on the plant type and part of the plant that uses them for their function.

I doubt it's or attraction. It just looks attractive so people seem to think that it's to attract insects. I think that rumor started before people really learned all the ways to get the plants to color up.

But did you actually read what I posted which is what Coline was commenting on? It said nothing about insects being attracted to them because of human perceptions of beauty. It said that one of the possible functions is that the fact that the pigment absorbs UV light could attract insects since they can perceive UV light, unlike humans.

Now I posted excerpts from a published article and the link to the article, do you have any sources that say that insect attraction is definitely not a part that the pigment plays other than your personal doubt?

I don't assume that any plant produces pigment to attract insects because there is no "choice" in there processes. I do think though that it's possible that insect may be attracted to the effect of the pigment and over time plants with better pigment production have been selected since they are better able to survive.

I'm a guy who like science based facts. In my researching this I've found several places indicating that in theory anthocyanin attracts insects in some way. I've found several places that don't reference insect attraction at all. But I have yet to find any papers indicating that anthocyanin does not attract insects.

We're aaaaalllll getting lured in.

parker679 wrote:

Chas wrote:

coline wrote:Parker is completely correct, that is the function that pigments as the red anthocianins, yellow carotenoids, and such other color pigments are made, that is a mechanism the plant has to absorb the extra electrons that light makes activated in the chlorophil using their energy as a fluorescense returning light or as heat excess, to protect the DNA and other important molecules in the cell, it is a protection indeed. But the plant may use it for many other purposes as the flowers, fruits or attraction. Also trees sometimes make their new forming fleshy leaves in that color for protection until they have grown enough to get their mechanics working.
Depends completely on the plant type and part of the plant that uses them for their function.

I doubt it's or attraction. It just looks attractive so people seem to think that it's to attract insects. I think that rumor started before people really learned all the ways to get the plants to color up.

But did you actually read what I posted which is what Coline was commenting on? It said nothing about insects being attracted to them because of human perceptions of beauty. It said that one of the possible functions is that the fact that the pigment absorbs UV light could attract insects since they can perceive UV light, unlike humans.

Now I posted excerpts from a published article and the link to the article, do you have any sources that say that insect attraction is definitely not a part that the pigment plays other than your personal doubt?

I don't assume that any plant produces pigment to attract insects because there is no "choice" in there processes. I do think though that it's possible that insect may be attracted to the effect of the pigment and over time plants with better pigment production have been selected since they are better able to survive.

I'm a guy who like science based facts. In my researching this I've found several places indicating that in theory anthocyanin attracts insects in some way. I've found several places that don't reference insect attraction at all. But I have yet to find any papers indicating that anthocyanin does not attract insects.

All I'm saying is the plants don't intentionally attract the insects with the red color. Maybe I should've made myself clearer.

xr280xr wrote:

Troll.png

We're aaaaalllll getting lured in.

You should learn what a troll is. I'm seeing this as a way of disagreeing.

Chas wrote:All I'm saying is the plants don't intentionally attract the insects with the red color. Maybe I should've made myself clearer.

That I can agree with.

But there is a difference between saying "insects aren't attracted to the anthocyanin" and saying "the purpose of anthocyanin is not to attract insects".

I was never saying that the purpose of the pigment is to attract bug, I was just arguing that it's possible for the pigment to attract insects and thus evolution has favored those plants with better pigment production. But I agree that it's not intentional and that the pigments purpose is UV protection and insect attraction was a coincidence. But then again, isn't that how evolution works? Nothing is really intentional, it's just mutations that make genetic survival more preferable and therefore tend to get passed along.