A tiny ant rushes along blades of grass above the marshy soil, smells the scent and cannot resist it. It follows the aroma and unsuspectingly ends up in a sticky trap, from where there is no return. The ant has found itself on the glands of oblong-leaved sundew – a carnivorous plant.
With the enzymes released through glands on the leaves, oblong-leaved sundew decomposes tiny invertebrate bodies and, in this way, obtains nitrogen compounds. There is a shortage of these compounds on its growing site, but they are vital for the plant's growth and development.
Oblong-leaved sundew is one of the rarest and most endangered plants in Slovenia and, because of its intriguing way of life, also protected. Don't take it away from its natural habitat, as it is attached to it, and will quickly die elsewhere.
