Stylidium

**Stylidium**s are carnivorous plants with passive traps. They use a sticky substance, produced on glandular hairs, to capture small dipterans. The traps are distinctive in that they are located on certain parts of the inflorescence, such as the sepals, the inner surface of the petals, or even the tip of the flower stalk.

They also have a pollen-release mechanism triggered by an insect’s movement on a flower. The pollen is then immediately projected onto the insect’s back, allowing it to be collected by the stigmas of another flower, on which the insect will subsequently land.

The genus comprises over 300 species. The vast majority of species grow in Australia, but they are found throughout Oceania and as far as south-east and east Asia. The northern limit of their range lies in southern Japan.