The Wonders of God’s Creation
We do not normally notice that many animals, birds and insects include plants in their diets. But do you know there are some plants that eat bugs and insects? How remarkable this is, because plants cannot travel from one place to another to capture their food, nor do they have stomachs, eyes or ears to help them.
For instance, consider the Sun-dew plant that grows in certain swamps. Its red, spoon-shaped leaves are covered with hairs. If a fly or bug lands on these hairs, it is trapped by a sticky fluid. Immediately all the other hairs near that spot bend over and hold the insect captive. The plant then absorbs its prey into its system, and the hairs go back in place to wait for another victim.
Then there is the Butterwort plant which has green leaves, rolled at the edges. These are covered with bumps that look like warts. From these bumps a substance like glue comes out to trap any insect touching it. When that happens, the leaf rolls up tightly and holds the bug while it is absorbed.
Pitcher plants are sometimes found in people’s homes as a houseplant. They are pretty plants, with brightly-colored, trumpet-shaped leaves which hold a watery nectar. Insects wanting to get at the nectar, crawl into the trumpet, unaware that they are passing over hairs pointing downward. As they try to return, they find themselves trapped by these hairs. They struggle until tired, and then drop into the “water” which digests them, making them food for the plant.
One insect we would like to see trapped by this plant is the mosquito. But the female can fly right down into the pitcher, lay her eggs in the liquid, and then fly back out safely, just like a helicopter. When the larvae hatch, the new adult mosquitoes escape the same way. There is also a wasp, in some parts of the South, that bites a hole in the bottom of the pitcher, allowing the liquid to drain out. Then it climbs inside, making its nest there without harm. How did the wasp learn this trick? Only the Creator God could give it this knowledge.
These unusual plants (and others like them) certainly have no intelligence to figure out ways of capturing food. They are another example of the wonders of God’s creation. Only God could provide food for these plants and at the same time get rid of a number of insects that are harmful to us.
We are reminded that the devil also has many traps in which he catches those who are not careful. If we know the Lord as our Saviour and walk close to Him, He is able to protect us from evil. “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.” Proverbs 3:5,65Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. (Proverbs 3:5‑6).
ML-05/31/1981