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How Venus Flytraps Snap

Picture Venus Flytrap
The force sensor of the microrobotic system deflects a sensory hair of a fllytrap that is kept open by the sensors of the load cell. (Image: Hannes Vogler, UZH)

Venus flytraps catch spiders and insects by snapping their trap leaves. This mechanism is activated when unsuspecting prey touch highly sensitive trigger hairs twice within 30 seconds. A study led by researchers at the University of Zurich has now shown that a single slow touch also triggers trap closure – probably to catch slow-moving larvae and snails.

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