Have you ever wondered what happens when you put your finger in your Venus flytrap? Well, the spiked teeth seem very dangerous, but if you do gather the courage to put your finger inside, it will not hurt a lot.
What happens if you put your finger in a Venus fly trap? Firstly, the Venus flytrap would not shut if you put your finger inside it as it requires multiple movements to shut out. So, you need to stimulate it multiple times to close the plant trap.
However, if it is closed, it may cause irritation due to the secretion of digestive juices in the plant. The Venus flytrap doesn’t have enough energy or digestive juices to digest your finger. So, the plant is more likely to die before it causes any damage. However, it may still cause some form of irritation to your fingers.
The Trap
Although the trap may seem threatening with its hinged traps, they are actually quite delicate. The plant has no teeth, and the outgrowths are basically hair-like structures that can cause no harm to your fingers. So, if you accidentally place your fingers inside the trap and it snaps shut, no harm will come to you.
Irritation in the skin
If you see that your plant has closed its trap on your finger, the first thing you need to do is calm down. The plant will not cause damage to your fingers. However, the secretion of digestive enzymes on your finger may cause irritation in your finger and cause it to turn red.
It happens as the plant detects your finger as prey and quickly secretes its enzymes to digest it, but thankfully it doesn’t have enough enzymes to penetrate the human skin and cause any serious damage to your fingers. Moreover, if the trap is not closed entirely, it would secrete a much lesser amount of enzymes than it generally does.
Blackening of the Traps
Firstly, the finger is larger than the trap, and it would not fully close after entrapping your finger. However, as it secretes its digestive juices, it may cause the plant to be susceptible to bacteria and mold. Once infested by bacteria or mold, they can cause severe damage to the plant if left untreated. So, it is best to avoid placing your finger inside your Venus flytrap. If you accidentally do so, pull it out immediately.
Pulling your Finger Out
While the plant may not harm your finger, you definitely stand a chance of hurting the plant. So, if your finger gets trapped in the plant, gently pull it out. Using force might harm the motion-sensing structures of the plant and render it unable to trap any more prey. So, caution is of utmost importance while pulling out your finger from the trap.
Thus, we can see that we are more of a threat to the plant than it is to us. So, these are the steps to be followed if your finger gets trapped in the Venus flytrap.
