Do carnivorous plants exploit prey perceptual bias? A case study in Drosera finlaysonii with yellow-green traps
6 affiliations
- 1Department of Biology, Naruto University of Education 1 , Naruto, Japan
- 2Department of Economics, Fukui Prefectural University 2 , Yoshida, Japan
- 3Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica 3 , Taipei City, Taiwan
- 4Basic Biology Program, Graduate University for Advanced Studies (SOKENDAI) 4 , Okazaki, Japan
- 5National Institute for Basic Biology 5 , Okazaki, Japan
- 6Department of Biology, Aichi University of Education 6 , Kariya, Japan
Abstract
Perceptual biases—disproportionate sensory responses to specific stimuli—are widespread in animals and can be exploited by predators to attract prey. However, this mechanism has not been rigorously tested in carnivorous plants. We investigated whether the yellow-green traps of Drosera finlaysonii (Droseraceae) exploit hemipterans’ preference for yellow to yellow-green stimuli that strongly activate green relative to blue photoreceptors. Using multispectral imaging, we quantified trap brightness and modelled the green-to-blue photoreceptor activation ratio (G/B ratio) of hemipteran prey. We characterized the taxonomic composition of prey captured by D. finlaysonii and deployed adhesive models differing in brightness and G/B ratio. We then compared arthropod assemblages between plants and models, and taxon-specific capture numbers among models. D. finlaysonii traps were brighter and had higher G/B ratios than sympatric graminoid leaves. Hemiptera were a major prey component, although their relative abundance varied between years. Yellow models, with the highest G/B ratio, captured more hemipterans than other colour models. However, arthropod assemblages captured by D. finlaysonii differed from those captured by yellow models, with proportionally more dipterans and fewer hemipterans. Thus, a high G/B ratio may contribute to hemipteran attraction and capture but cannot alone explain the overall prey assemblage in D. finlaysonii.
Related
- Male function matters: extending the preconditions for pollinator–prey conflict. A commentary on ‘Fatal attraction: flowers lure pollinators as prey in the carnivorous Drosera hookeri (Droseraceae)’
- Fatal attraction: flowers lure pollinators as prey in the carnivorous Drosera hookeri (Droseraceae)
- Shedding light on fenestrations in carnivorous pitcher plants: a test for convergent function
- Prepubertal ovariectomy alters dorsomedial striatum indirect pathway neuron excitability and explore/exploit balance in female mice
- Do insect food-derived ecdysteroids appear in the blood of waterfowl, predatory birds, carnivorous mammals and primates?
BibTeX
@article{tagawa2026carnivorous,
title = {{Do carnivorous plants exploit prey perceptual bias? A case study in Drosera finlaysonii with yellow-green traps}},
author = {Kazuki Tagawa and Aoi Watanabe and Shu-Miaw Chaw and Mitsuyasu Hasebe and Mikio Watanabe},
journal = {Royal Society Open Science},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1098/rsos.261740},
url = {https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsos/article/13/10/261740/483904/Do-carnivorous-plants-exploit-prey-perceptual-bias},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Do carnivorous plants exploit prey perceptual bias? A case study in Drosera finlaysonii with yellow-green traps
AU - Kazuki Tagawa
AU - Aoi Watanabe
AU - Shu-Miaw Chaw
AU - Mitsuyasu Hasebe
AU - Mikio Watanabe
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/07
JO - Royal Society Open Science
DO - 10.1098/rsos.261740
UR - https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsos/article/13/10/261740/483904/Do-carnivorous-plants-exploit-prey-perceptual-bias
AB - Perceptual biases—disproportionate sensory responses to specific stimuli—are widespread in animals and can be exploited by predators to attract prey. However, this mechanism has not been rigorously tested in carnivorous plants. We investigated whether the yellow-green traps of Drosera finlaysonii (Droseraceae) exploit hemipterans’ preference for yellow to yellow-green stimuli that strongly activate green relative to blue photoreceptors. Using multispectral imaging, we quantified trap brightness and modelled the green-to-blue photoreceptor activation ratio (G/B ratio) of hemipteran prey. We characterized the taxonomic composition of prey captured by D. finlaysonii and deployed adhesive models differing in brightness and G/B ratio. We then compared arthropod assemblages between plants and models, and taxon-specific capture numbers among models. D. finlaysonii traps were brighter and had higher G/B ratios than sympatric graminoid leaves. Hemiptera were a major prey component, although their relative abundance varied between years. Yellow models, with the highest G/B ratio, captured more hemipterans than other colour models. However, arthropod assemblages captured by D. finlaysonii differed from those captured by yellow models, with proportionally more dipterans and fewer hemipterans. Thus, a high G/B ratio may contribute to hemipteran attraction and capture but cannot alone explain the overall prey assemblage in D. finlaysonii.
SN - 2054-5703
ER -