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ERNST HAECKEL: ART FORMS IN NATURE
NEPENTHACEAE: Kannenpflanzen (Plantae: Nepenthales)
The Malaysian pitcher plant was discovered on January 4, 1901, in a waterfall in Java where Haeckel painted it from life. The leaves of this insectivorous flowering plant are shaped like pitchers and act as ant traps. Lured by nectar, insects drown in the rainwater collected in the pitcher and are subsequently digested by plant enzymes. The curlicue stems and tendrils lend this drawing a decidedly Art Nouveau flair.
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Curated by Ann Weissmann, Exhibitions Curator MBLWHOI Library
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