The complete life history of the kleptoparasitic ‘sundew flower fly’, Toxomerus basalis, is presented and illustrated. Adults of this species are photographed alive for the first time, including video recordings of larval and adult behaviour. Adult flies of both sexes visit Drosera (sundews) and show territorial behaviour around the plants, avoiding the dangerous sticky traps and demonstrating recognition of their larval host plant. Females lay eggs directly on non-sticky parts of the Drosera host plants, such as on the lower surface of the leaves and flower stalks, but apparently also on other plants growing in close proximity with the sundews.

The pitchers of Nepenthes rajah, a montane carnivorous plant species from Borneo, are large enough to capture small vertebrates such as rats or lizards, which occasionally drown therein. The interactions of N. rajah with vertebrates, however, are poorly understood, and the potential mechanisms that lure vertebrates to the pitchers are largely unknown. We observed frequent visits (average: one visit per 4.2 h) of both the diurnal tree shrew Tupaia montana and the nocturnal rat Rattus baluensis to pitchers by infrared sensor camera and video recording. Both mammalian species often licked the inner surface of the pitcher lid, which harbours numerous exudate-producing glands. Analysis of volatiles extracted from the secretions of the pitcher lids by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC/MS) revealed 44 volatile compounds, including hydrocarbons, alcohols, esters, ketones and sulphur-containing compounds, which are commonly present in sweet fruit and flower odours. The faeces of small mammals were repeatedly observed inside the pitcher, whereas we found the body of only one Tupaia montana drowned in the 42, vital and reasonably large, surveyed pitchers. Our findings suggest that the N. rajah pitcher makes use of the perceptual biases of rats and tree shrews by emitting volatiles known from fruits. The profits that the plant obtains from the repeated visits of two small mammals, together with the provision of exudates for the mammals, comprise an exceptional case of plant–vertebrate interaction.

Nepenthes madagascariensis is a carnivorous plant which captures its prey in pitcher-like leaves. It is endemic to Madagascar where it occurs along the eastern coast. Altogether 94.3% of its prey animals belong to three taxa: Formicidae (80.2%), Diptera (9.7%) and Coleoptera (4.4%). The prey compositions of the dimorphic lower and upper pitcher types differ significantly, especially in the markedly higher proportion of ants in lower pitchers and the higher number of flying insects in upper pitchers. A comparison concerning the trap frequency of taxa with literature data from Asian Nepenthes species showed that the upper pitchers of N. madagascariensis contained much higher proportions of Coleoptera, Diptera and Lepidoptera; these differences may partly be due to seasonal reasons. No significant correlation could be established between the numbers of prey items with pitcher size. This paper is the first characterization of the prey composition of the little known N. madagascariensis.

An analysis of the morphology and the prey consumed by two carnivorous species of bladderworts (Utricularia gibba and U. sp.2) from a pond (Annie pond) in the heart of the Kaw swamp (French Guiana) has allowed a comparison of the preferential prey of: 1) a single species over two different periods (the end of the rainy season and the beginning of the dry season during an oligotrophic phase); and 2) the two coexistent species within a single period (the beginning of the dry season, during a temporary mesotrophic phase). Among the immediately adjacent planktonic and periphytic animals, and despite their low prevalence relative to smaller organisms such as Gastrotricha and Rotifera, cladocerans and copepods (particularly large individuals) appeared to be strongly predated. The differing organization and size-class distributions of the traps, as well as the extent of epiphytic colonization, had a probable defining effect on the alimentary regime of the two species of Utricularia. These more or less adaptive characteristics allowed the bladderworts to take advantage of the distinct preferences of various potential prey in terms of nutrition behaviour and habitat so to limit the feeding competition between the two sympatric species. The impact of this selective zooplankton predation by bladderworts on the trophic organization and the ecological functions of this pond are also addressed.