Ed Dolphin writes for the Sid Valley Biodiversity Group writes about sundrews.

We used to have carnivorous plants on Salcombe and Peak Hills, now you have to go up onto the Pebblebed Heaths to see these amazing plants.

Sundews are curious little plants that have adapted to survive in heathland bogs where few other plant species can survive. Victorian plant hunters recorded Sundews living on Salcombe Hill and Peak Hill, probably Mutter’s Moor. These areas used to be much wetter and the boggy ground was quite acidic. This meant there were very few of the essential nutrients that plants need, particularly the nitrates needed to build new protein. Sundews overcome this by trapping insects and ‘eating’ them by secreting digestive enzymes.

If you go for a walk on Aylesbeare Common and come across one of the small ponds then you are likely to see areas of bright green sphagnum moss studded with small bright red patches, these are the Sundews. The Victorians recorded all three native species locally but you are only likely to find the Round-leaved Sundew, Drosera rotundiflora, now.

A closer look will reveal a rosette of round leaves covered in red hairs each hair having a drop of fluid at the tip. This is a sweet mucilage that attracts insects, but it is a trap, the mucilage is sticky and any insect landing on it will not escape. As the insect struggles, other hairs on the leaf are triggered to bend over to complete the trap. In some Sundews the whole leaf will curl up and enclose the victim.

The sticky mucilage clogs the insect’s breathing spiracles and it dies quite quickly usually. Then the surface of the leaf releases digestive juices to dissolve the body and the nutrients are taken in through the leaf surface rather than through the roots as in most plants.

Sundews produce pretty white flowers but craftily hold these on a spike well above the sticky leaves so that pollinating insects can get from plant to plant.

The name Sundew refers to the glistening of the mucilage drops like morning dew but, unlike real dew drops, the mucilage does not evaporate in the sun. This ability to survive the sun’s burning power was linked to its use as a herbal remedy for chest infections. Research at the University of Münster has shown that chemicals in the mucilage do actually improve the lung function by speeding up the mechanism for clearing congestion in the airways.

Another common name was Lustwort and it was used as an aphrodisiac because, as recorded in the 16th century Gerard’s Herball, “sheep and other cattle, if they do but only taste of it, are provoked to lust” and, “it stirreth up a desire to lust, which before was dulled, and as it were asleep.” I haven’t found any reliable evidence for this effect.

Many people are fascinated by insectivorous plants such as Sundews, Pitcher Plants and Venus Flytraps and keep them as house plants. Unfortunately, some people will go to places like Aylesbeare Common to collect them and this is one reason that Sundews are scarce, but the main reason is loss of habitat. In Victorian times, areas of Salcombe Hill were boggy but the heath was enclosed and drained in the 1870s and the Sundews could not compete with the new plants that could now grow there. Fortunately, Clinton Devon Estates and the RSPB are committed to maintaining Aylesbeare Common as lowland heath with occasional acidic bogs and pools, let’s hope future weather makes that possible.