GoKawiilSaxifraga candelabrum confirmed as carnivorous plant, validating 1875 Darwin prediction
Researchers led by Hang Sun studied Saxifraga candelabrum growing in China's Qinghai–Tibet Plateau–Hengduan Mountains and found insects trapped on sticky glandular hairs in 43 of 45 specimens, averaging 71 insects per mature plant. Tests revealed phosphatase enzyme activity indicating digestion, and feeding experiments with nitrogen-labeled fruit flies showed the plant absorbed nutrients from its prey, confirming it meets the criteria for carnivory. The findings, published in Nature Communications, support a hypothesis Charles Darwin proposed in 1875 about the genus Saxifraga.