When I was growing up in Luanda, Angola, I remember a peculiar bush. When you touched it, the area where contact was made wilted immediately, with all the leaves drooping. This lasted for only 2 or 3 minutes, after which the leaves slowly returned to normal. Does anyone know the name of this bush and why it behaves in this way?
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鈥� My botanist father offers another theory as to why Mimosa pudica, the drooping plant your correspondent observed, behaves like this: the ploy discourages herbivores. If a herbivore starts chomping at the leaves and immediately the plant starts to wilt, pretty soon it will look rather unappetising. Presumably a lush bush appears to contain more nutrients than one that is wilting, so the herbivore moves on to lusher-looking plants instead. This seems a rather neat defence mechanism.
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Chris Wright, Hampton East, Victoria, Australia