How do the traps move so fast?
The video below nicely demonstrates the motion of a Venus flytrap being triggered.
If you have read our “How do the traps move” article you will already know that the movement of a Venus flytrap is poorly understood but is likely related to the flow of ions inside the plants leaves.
However, this only explains the initial motion of the trap. The aggressive fly trapping strength is gained from far simpler means … the secret to the Venus flytraps speed and strength does not rely in muscles or flows of ions, but the geometry of the traps.
Imagine a tennis ball which has been chopped in half and inverted. The tennis ball is quite stable in it’s inverted state, however if you bend the ball even slightly back towards it’s usual state, it will snap back into place very quickly. This is similar to the process occuring in a Venus flytrap. The traps are effectively in a constant state of inversion just like the tennis ball, when the trap is triggered, the plant pushes it’s lobes inwards triggering the snap and consequent consumption of it’s tasty prey.