Do carnivores plant reverse the food chain?

Question

venus flytrap and pitcher plant are endangered non vegetarian plants that feeds on small insects and mamals does that reverse the food chain?

Answer 1

No, because the food chain is a conceptual structure detailing the relationships (or potential relationships) of predator-prey for all life.

A lion wouldn't suddenly find itself the prey of an oak tree, would it?

Answer 2

Interesting question. Carnivorous plants are just part of the food chain. Maybe there is some revenge factor going on. Hard to see a reversal as much as an adaptation for survival. Nothing in nature is so linear and there are always exceptions to the rule.

If the reverse is true then it would somehow switch the food chain to eat more animals and gain more energy, so why are there no 50 foot pitcher plants? If they can use the energy to move up the food chain then a reversal occurs, otherwise they may just be static in the chain without a means to benefit beyond normal growth.

Go see some of these marvelous plants at http://www.nature-escapes-kuala-lumpur.c...

Answer 3

Compared to the number of non-carnivorous plant flora, non-vegetarian plants, as you yourself said are endangered and very few in number -- so I don't think this can be termed as a food chain reversal (also because the animals they digest are not herbivores).

Answer 4

No, carnivorous plants are still producers.  They use photosynthesis to produce their energy needs.  They have adapted to survive in nitrogen-poor soils by capturing insects.  The proteins from the insects provides the nitrogen that the plant needs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnivorous...