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LESSON 5 · The Silent Intelligence of Plants

Speed Versus Patience

These traps split into two camps. Active hunters move: the flytrap snaps in a tenth of a second, and the bladderwort fires in under a millisecond.

Passive hunters simply wait. The sundew's glue and the pitcher's slippery tube need no motion at all; prey traps itself. Speed costs energy, so most carnivorous plants stay still and let the trap do the work.