An unusual plant that uses sticky hairs to catch insects

 I visited the wetland located in the neighboring town recently, although it was small scale. This is a small transitional wetland with a circumference of approximately 500 meters and an area of about 1.5 hectares; it is believed to have formed about 25,000 years ago.

What interested me most was the carnivorous plant, the sundew. Actually, I had never seen one before.　These plants belonging to the genus Drosera have the leaves covered with sticky hairs that trap and digest insects.

I think this leaf is holding some kind of small insect prey.

An insect like a fly is trapped in the leaf on the left.

A mosquito-like insect has been captured.

A small insect was captured.

That's kind of creepy, isn't it?

In reality, actual plants are small.

Unlike the sundew's distinctive appearance, which traps insects with the sticky substance on its leaves, sundew flowers have five small, pretty petals and come in white, pale pink, and reddish hues.

This pink small flower is called Toki-sou, its scientific name is Pogonia japonica. It exists only in Japan and nearby countries. It is a perennial herb belonging to the family Orchidaceae. 

Here is a close-up of the flower.  It looks like some animal opening its mouth wide.

This looks like some kind of flower, but it's actually a seed pod that remains after the seeds have been dispersed.

This is the original flower.

On June 8th and 10th, 2026, at Maibara City, Japan