''Pinguicula ramosa'' is a species of

butterwort ''Pinguicula'', commonly known as butterworts, is a genus of carnivorous flowering plants in the family Lentibulariaceae. They use sticky, glandular leaves to lure, trap, and digest insects in order to supplement the poor mineral nutrition they ...

, a

carnivorous plant Carnivorous plants are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients from trapping and consuming animals or protozoans, typically insects and other arthropods, and occasionally small mammals and birds. They have adapted to grow in waterlo ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the mountains of

Nikkō National Park is a national park in the Kantō region, on the main island of Honshū in Japan. The park spreads over three prefectures: Tochigi, Gunma and Fukushima, and was established in 1934. History The establishment of Nikkō National Park dates to ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. It belongs to the section micranthus and is closely related to ''

Pinguicula variegata ''Pinguicula'', commonly known as butterworts, is a genus of carnivorous flowering plants in the family Lentibulariaceae. They use sticky, glandular leaves to lure, trap, and digest insects in order to supplement the poor mineral nutrition they ...

''. It is unique in the genus for having a forked flower stalk.

Description

Habit

''Pinguicula ramosa'' forms a ground-hugging

rosette Rosette is the French diminutive of ''rose''. It may refer to: Flower shaped designs * Rosette (award), a mark awarded by an organisation * Rosette (design), a small flower design *hence, various flower-shaped or rotational symmetric forms: ** R ...

composed of five to six succulent leaves supported by a fine network of fibrous roots. The 8–15 mm long, 5–8 mm wide light-green leaves are

elliptic In mathematics, an ellipse is a plane curve surrounding two focal points, such that for all points on the curve, the sum of the two distances to the focal points is a constant. It generalizes a circle, which is the special type of ellipse in ...

spatulate The following terms are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (that is, the leaf blade or 'lamina' is undivided) or compound (that is, the leaf blade is divided into two or more leaflets) ...

and curl in slightly at the margins. As with all

s, the leaves are densely covered with glandular hairs that attract, trap, and digest arthropod prey to supplement the poor nutrient availability of its environment. During winter

dormancy Dormancy is a period in an organism's Biological life cycle, life cycle when growth, development, and (in animals) physical activity are temporarily stopped. This minimizes metabolism, metabolic activity and therefore helps an organism to conserv ...

, the plant forms a small hybernaculum, from which it re-emerges in April.

Flowers

The 15–90 mm long flower stalks are unique in the genus in being forked near their base. The stalks are densely covered with glandular hairs (like the leaves) and support 2-3

zygomorphic Floral symmetry describes whether, and how, a flower, in particular its perianth, can be divided into two or more identical or mirror-image parts. Uncommonly, flowers may have no axis of symmetry at all, typically because their parts are spir ...

flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

s in June or July. The 7–11 mm flowers have a three-lobed upper lip and a two-lobed lower lip. The petal lobes are ovate-lanceolate,

pubescent The adjective pubescent may describe: * people or animals undergoing puberty * plants that are hairy, covered in trichomes * insects that are covered in setae In biology, setae (; seta ; ) are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-lik ...

, and violet or white in color. The spur (an extension of the floral tube) is conical and reaches a length of 3–4 mm. Fertilized flowers form an

obovate The following terms are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (that is, the leaf blade or 'lamina' is undivided) or compound (that is, the leaf blade is divided into two or more leaflets) ...

seed pod This page provides a glossary of plant morphology. Botanists and other biologists who study plant morphology use a number of different terms to classify and identify plant organs and parts that can be observed using no more than a handheld magnify ...

2–4 mm long and 2–3 mm wide. The chromosome count for the species is 2n=18, another unique feature within the

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

Distribution, habitat, and environmental status

''Pinguicula ramosa'' grows almost exclusively on mountains in

, particularly on Mount Koshin, between 1500 and 1900 m in altitude. Two mountains outside of the park, Mount Kesamaru and Mount Ozaku-san, also host populations. Here, ''P. ramosa'' colonizes weathered granite rocks and volcanic cliffs in damp, foggy locations in full or partial shade. The species is frequently associated with '' Saxifraga fortunei'' and ''

Primula modesta ''Primula'' () is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants in the family Primulaceae. They include the primrose ('' P. vulgaris''), a familiar wildflower of banks and verges. Other common species are '' P. auricula'' (auricula), '' P. veris'' (cow ...

''.Michiaki Mabuchi: ''Pinguicula ramosa''
/ref> ''Pinguicula ramosa'' is endangered due to its small distribution, as well as the degradation of its habitat through rock degradation from

acid rain Acid rain is rain or any other form of Precipitation (meteorology), precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it has elevated levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). Most water, including drinking water, has a neutral pH that exists b ...

and

climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or other parts of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders) to small boulders. Climbing is done for locom ...

activities, as well as herbivory from

deer A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...

. While the species is strictly protected under Japanese law, its future remains uncertain.

References

* S.J. Casper: ''Monographie der Gattung Pinguicula.'' In: ''Bibliotheca Botanica.'' Heft 127/128, p. 17, 1966, Stuttgart
Michiaki Mabuchi: ''Pinguicula ramosa''

{{Taxonbar, from=Q293172 Carnivorous plants of Asia ramosa Endemic flora of Japan Plants described in 1890

Description

Habit

Flowers

Distribution, habitat, and environmental status

See also

References