Name: _____________________________
Nonfiction Reading 
Carnivorous Plants

Directions: Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow. Refer to the text to check your answers when appropriate.

Imagine that you're a fly. You're just zipping around the sky, looking for a place to rest, when you see nice pink leaf. That looks like a nice place to land. You think to yourself in your fly head. As you rest your feet on the leaf, you notice something strange. This leaf is hairy. You begin to make your move, but you trigger the plant's reflex. Snap! In one-tenth of a second, you are caught in the Venus flytrap. You will be digested in five to twelve days. Welcome to the world of carnivorous plants!

There are over a quarter of a millions plant species. Only 600 or so are carnivorous. We call them this because they attract, trap, and eat bugs. Like other plants, they get energy from the sun. But unlike other plants, they get their nutrients from their prey. Carnivorous plants live in bogs and places where the soil lacks nutrients. Most plants get nutrients from the soil. Carnivorous plants have turned to other sources.

The snap of the Venus flytrap is not the only way that plants eat bugs. Pitcher plants trick their prey into landing on them. They offer nectar bribes to the foolish insects that would take them. True to their name, pitcher plants have deep chambers. Their landing surface is slippery. They have inward pointing hairs, making it hard to escape. The fly lands on the pitcher plant to eat, but slips into a pit filled with digestive fluids and is eaten. 

Then there are sundews. We call them sundews because they sparkle in the sun as if covered in morning dew. Of course, that sparkle is from something much more treacherous. It is a sweet goo called mucilage that bugs can't resist. Sundews create mucilage to attract bugs. As they fly in to eat, bugs become trapped in the very object of their desire. They soon exhaust themselves by trying to escape the mucilage or the sundew's tentacles, which respond to prey by curling around them, smother them. Bugs usually die in about 15 minutes. Then the plant dissolves its prey in enzymes and absorbs the nutrients. 	
Have you ever walked into trouble and found that you couldn't get out? So has every insect that has ever wandered into a corkscrew plant. Bugs love to investigate plants for nectar and food. Corkscrew plants have inviting stems. Curved hairs line the inside of these stems. These hairs allow insects to go up the stems, but not back. Going forward leads a chamber filled with digestive fluid, the plant's stomach. Bugs who wander into the corkscrew plant find that they are unable to escape. They must march to their own demise.

Then there are the bladderworts. They're about as nice as they sound. They live in water and float near the surface. Their traps are like small bladders hidden beneath the water. Only their flowers are visible from the surface. When bugs swim into the trigger hairs, the plant reacts. A trapdoor in the bladder opens up. The bladder sucks up the prey and the water surrounding it.  A tenth of a second later, the bladder shuts again. The plant has trapped the prey. It releases digestive fluids. The prey will be digested within hours. 

Carnivorous plants might sound tough, but they are difficult to keep at home. They are built to survive in places that other plants cannot. This specialization comes at a cost. They have a hard time adapting to other environments. Their strengths become weaknesses in rich soil. They depend on the harsh yet delicate environments in which they thrive. They are not so hardy after all. Still, there's something to be said about the power of life when one finds a plant that can survive in barren soil. 	
1. Which statement would the author most likely agree with?

a. There are too many species of carnivorous plants. 

b. There are too few plant species in the world.

c. Only a small number of plants are carnivorous.

d. A majority of plants are carnivorous.

2. Which plant traps bugs in its stem and forces them to walk forward? 

a. Corkscrew plants					b. Sundews

c. Bladderworts					d. Pitcher plants

3. Which of the following statements is false?

a. Carnivorous plants get their energy from eating bugs.

b. Carnivorous plants do not get nutrients from the soil.

c. Carnivorous plants get their energy from the sun.

d. Carnivorous plants get their nutrients from eating bugs.

4. Which event happens last when a sundew eats a meal? 

a. The sundew creates mucilage.

b. The sundew's tentacles curl in response to the prey. 

c. The bug is attracted to the mucilage.

d. The sundew releases enzymes. 

5. Which best expresses the main idea of the third paragraph?

a. There are more types of carnivorous plants than the Venus fly trap.

b. The pitcher plant tricks bugs into falling into its stomach.

c. The Venus flytrap kills its prey in a various ways.

d. Some plants attract bugs by offering them nectar.

6. Which best defines the word treacherous as it is used in the fourth paragraph?

a. Something that provides nutrients.			b. Something that is very bright.

c. Something that tastes delicious.			d. Something that has a hidden danger.

7. Which best describes the overall text structure of the second paragraph?

a. Chronological order				b. Compare and contrast

c. Sequential order					d. Spatial

8. Which statement would the author most likely disagree with?

a. Carnivorous plants cannot thrive in rich soil.

b. Bladderworts react quickly when their trigger hairs are bumped.

c. Carnivorous plants are tough and can live in any environment.

d. Bladderworts hide their traps just below the surface of the water.

9. Which best expresses the main idea of the last paragraph?

a. Carnivorous plants are not hard to take care of because they feed themselves.

b. Carnivorous plants are delicate because they need certain conditions to survive.

c. Carnivorous plants are difficult to keep at home, but you should keep trying.

d. Carnivorous plants are inspirational and they are interesting to watch and own.

10. Which title best expresses the author's main purpose in writing this text?

a. Watch Out! How To Avoid Being Eaten by Carnivorous Plants

b. At Risk: How You Can Help to Preserve Carnivorous Plants

c. Venus Flytrap: Nature's Most Beautiful and Dangerous Plant

d. Fatal Flowers: Plants That Kill Insects

Long Response

1. In what ways are carnivorous plants stronger and more resilient than other plants? In what ways are they weaker? Answer both parts of the question and support your answer with quotes from the text. Explain what your quotes show.
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2. Compare and contrast two types of plants described in this passage. How are they similar? How are they different? Refer to the text in your answer and explain your arguments completely.
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3. Carnivorous plants have some unique and amazing characteristics. What do these characteristics suggest about life and the world that we live in? In other words, what can carnivorous plants teach us about the world? Make a point and support it with an example from the text. Explain what your support shows.
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