Rare plant turns carnivorous when it is low on a key nutrient

A uncommon species of climbing vine from West Africa can flip right into a carnivore when it doesn’t get sufficient diet from the soil.

The liana Triphyophyllum peltatum grows in moist, forested hillsides in coastal areas of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ivory Coast.

Whereas some crops are totally carnivorous, T. peltatum is the one one identified to be a part-time carnivore. It may well unfurl particular leaves with glands oozing sticky droplets that entice beetles …