Pinguicula

Day 279: There is a good reason that Pinguicula vulgaris (Butterwort) is relatively uncommon in western Washington: it prefers an alkaline habitat. There are only a select few places where it can find a suitable ecological niche because our Pacific Northwest environment is largely acidic, thanks to its heavy cover of evergreen trees. In this case, it's growing on a vertical rock face where fir needles are not likely to accumulate. Presumably its substrate rock is of alkaline composition, which in this case would exclude granodiorite, andesite or basalt. Butterwort is an insectivore which captures insects by means of a sticky secretion on its leaves. When an insect is trapped by the mucilaginous "glue," its struggles trigger the release of a digestive enzyme contained in specialized glands. Exoskeletal remains of insects can often be seen as black dots on the yellow-green foliage.

Pinguicula Vulgaris, Butterwort

Day 256: Every time my botany partners refer to "Butterwort," I experience a moment of confusion. Butterwort? Do I know that plant? Oh, Pinguicula! Why, when the Latin option is such a delightful word, would anyone call this delicate insectivore by an English name? The suffix "-wort" means "plant." Okay, that's easy. Perhaps "Butter" refers to the yellowish foliage and, extending that logic with no particular validation, the fact that flies stick to it when they land on it. Anyone who's ever been to a picnic can see the sense in that. In fact, the Latin nomenclature derives from "pinguis," meaning "fat," and indeed the leaves have an oily sheen to them due to the secretions produced by specialized glands. One secretion lures and ensnares insects and, as the insect struggles to free itself, another type of gland is stimulated to produce digestive enzymes. The insects' soft tissue is dissolved and absorbed into the leaves, leaving behind their hard exoskeletons, like those visible in this photo. Like many other "carnivorous" plants, Pinguicula likes moist areas where insect life is abundant and temperatures stay on the cool side even during heat waves.

Pinguicula A Week Later

Day 235: In the space of a week, Pinguicula/Butterwort went from bud to blossom and is now putting on a spectacular (if somewhat secretive) show. It is known to occur in only a handful of locations in Mount Rainier National Park, but for all of its rarity, it can be found around the world in the northern latitudes. Often referred to as a "carnivorous" plant, the correct term should be "insectivorous." Unlike the cartoon Venus Fly-Trap, its leaves do not snap shut on its prey; rather, they secrete a sticky liquid which attracts and holds insects while they are digested by enzymes. That said, the edges of the leaves may roll inward to assist in confining insects, but they do so slowly, and do not fully close like the "jaws" of a Fly-Trap. In late summer, Pinguicula begins forming a hibernaculum, reverting to a small, rootless cluster of leaf buds which persist through the plant's winter dormancy. These buds husband the starches/sugars which will nourish the emerging plants in the spring. Pinguicula may spread when these hibernacula are washed free of their moorings or alternately, by seed.

Pinguicula Vulgaris

Day 230: Some Latin binomials confuse the tongue so much that a large number of botanists may be heard referring to certain plants by their common names; case in point, Pinguicula vulgaris. "Pin-GWICK-yu-luh" is not an easy word to pronounce, but "Butterwort" is. The "vulgaris" portion of its scientific name means "common," but this plant has only recently been removed from the "Rare, Threatened and Sensitive" list. It is one of a handful of insectivorous plants found in Washington, and only occurs in certain pocket ecologies. It dines on the gnats, mosquitoes and other small insects which are attracted to a sticky substance exuded by its leaves, digesting their soft parts by means of a secondary enzyme which converts them into utilizable nutrients. The yellow-green leaves may look like they have black freckles, but a closer look will show the spots to be insect exoskeletal material, the remains of Pinguicula's leisurely meal.

Butterwort

Day 245: The space of a week saw the Butterwort (Pinguicula vulgaris) go from bud to lavish blossom in its isolated niche in a wet rock wall. This little carnivore is rare in the Park and elsewhere. I know that it occurs in at least one other area, but unfortunately, that location is at one of the furthest possible removes from my home. It's not that it's distant geographically. In fact, if this Crow could fly, it's less than twenty miles, but to make the connections by car, it's close to a three-hour drive. In this photo, the foliage on the right belongs to a different plant. The insect husks on the paler green leaves on the left mark the foliage of the hungry Butterwort.

Pinguicula Vulgaris, Butterwort

Day 233: We tend to think of carnivorous plants as things which live in mysterious tropical forests, influenced (I am certain) by fanciful fiction, cartoons and suchlike, but there are a number of species suited to the cooler climates of the northern latitudes. In fact, we have a few right here in the Pacific Northwest. Pinguicula vulgaris (Butterwort) prefers a habitat of year-'round moisture and indirect light, an environment likewise enjoyed by its prey, gnats and mosquitoes. Its leaves secrete a sticky substance which attracts insects. A second type of specialized gland in its foliage exudes a digestive enzyme which breaks down the soft parts of the bugs into a form the plant can utilize as nutrients. Even when not in bloom, the plant can be recognized by its yellow-green, fleshy leaves which are often speckled with the indigestible remains of its food. Currently, Pinguicula is listed as "Threatened and Endangered" in four states: Maine, New Hampshire, New York and Wisconsin. It should be considered rare in all other localities.

Butterwort, Pinguicula Vulgaris

Day 254: Pinguicula vulgaris (Butterwort) is not a new plant for my list, but it is one I monitor because it is relatively uncommon. It is insectivorous. It snares and digests its prey via secretions from two different types of specialized glands within its tongue-like basal leaves (the yellow-green foliage in the center of this photo). These glands also produce a bactericide which slows the decay process, allowing Butterwort to dine at leisure on the nutrients it extracts from small insects. It prefers a consistently damp environment such as the one shown here: a vertical rock face which drips continuously even in late summer. As you might imagine, some sacrifices of comfort were required to obtain this photo. Sodden sleeves and wet knees are just a few of the occupational hazards appurtenant to botany.

Pinguicula Vulgaris - Butterwort

Day 236: Another score for "Team Biota" and a life-list species for me, a thriving colony of Butterwort was growing on a rock wall over which a steady drip of water was falling. Ten feet above it, we spotted another solitary plant, its yellow leaves and single blue flower the only other evidence of the species at the site. If not considered rare in the catalogue of Mount Rainier flora, Pinguicula vulgaris has been classified as "review - group 1" per "The Endangered, Threatened and Sensitive Vascular Plants of Washington" (2014) and is reported to occur in only a few places in the Park. This location was not one of the ones on record for the species.

Pinguicula is an insectivore. Tiny, specialized glands on the upper surfaces of its leaves exude a sticky/slimy substance which traps insects. The hapless mosquito or gnat which becomes ensnared in the goo is then digested by enzymes contained in another type of gland. Husks of former meals are often found on the leaves of Butterwort.