PREY CAPTURE BY A CARNIVOROUS PLANT WITH HANGING ADHESIVE TRAPS - PINGUICULA-LONGIFOLIA

Arthropods captured by the hanging leaves of Pinguicula longifolia sub sp. longifolia, a carnivorous endemic plant of the Pyrenees, have been analyzed. The size and taxonomic group of prey were compared to the a vailable arthropods in the local environment, which were captured usin g artificial traps placed within and next to the plant populations. Un like other Pinguicula species, its diet consists almost exclusively of flying insects (mainly diptera). Leaves caught basically small insect s (1-4 mm length), and a higher proportion of diptera than traps. Thes e results suggest that its diet is influenced by several factors: the spatial disposition of leaves, their restricted retention capacity of captured insects, and some attracting trait of leaves for certain inse cts.