Venus flytrap is a carnivorous plant that grows in the wild only within 90-miles of Wilmington, North Carolina. The plant catches insects and uses them for nutrition. The plants leaves have hair. When an insect contacts a hair on the leaf, the trap closes if a another hair is contacted within twenty seconds of the first contact.
Poachers have been trafficking this plant by thousands. The plant is at a risk of going extinct in the wild due to poaching. The plant is being plucked illegally from the wild, from gardens and nurseries. Before, 2014, the fine for poaching the plant was just $20-50. With such a small penalty, poachers were willing to take the risk. Effective Dec. 1, 2014, the state upgraded the theft of flytraps growing in the wild to a felony, from a misdemeanor. If convicted, a poacher can face up to 29 months in jail and fine. In January 2015, four men were caught with 970 Venus flytraps. They became the first people in the state to be charged with felony poaching.
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North Carolina is more aggressively protecting the plants, which grow in the wild only in a 75-mile radius near Wilmington, as fears of extinction increase.
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en.wikipedia.org
The Venus flytrap (also referred to as Venus’s flytrap or Venus’ flytrap), Dionaea muscipula, is a carnivorous plant native to subtropical wetlands on the East Coast …
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The carnivorous plant is finding it difficult to thrive in its natural habitat
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blogs.scientificamerican.com
Venus Flytraps Risk Extinction in the Wild at the Hands of Poachers. Earlier this month four men were arrested for poaching on the Holly Shelter Game Land preserve in …
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forcechange.com
The Venus flytrap, a predatory plant that feeds on insects and pest species, is being heavily poached from its habitat along the Carolina coast. Poachers only receive …
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motherboard.vice.com
In the public consciousness, the Venus flytrap is prolific. But in the wild, it’s disappearing.
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First Felony Charges for Theft of Venus Flytraps from Wild . 7 January 2015; Number of views: 10586
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SVEnvironment 