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Aldrovanda - predators?

Are there any animals that are known to eat Aldrovanda? I started an aquatic plant container recently and today found most of the Aldrovanda missing, a clump of Utricularia that looks like it has been teased apart, and quite a lot of animal poop scattered near, and in the water. It certainly is a discouraging start to aquatic plant cultivation, especially when I was able to get ahold of red Aldrovanda for it.
 
Are there any animals that are known to eat Aldrovanda? I started an aquatic plant container recently and today found most of the Aldrovanda missing, a clump of Utricularia that looks like it has been teased apart, and quite a lot of animal poop scattered near, and in the water. It certainly is a discouraging start to aquatic plant cultivation, especially when I was able to get ahold of red Aldrovanda for it.

There are reports that ducks and other waterfowl enjoy eating Aldrovanda, especially winter turions. It's been very dry on the west coast recently, so maybe a thirsty/curious animal decided to toss things around a bit in your container. A layer of mesh or chicken wire might discourage animals from disturbing your plants in the future. I hope that your Aldrovanda will make a comeback!
 
Oh my gosh! Thats horrible :( im sorry to hear this happened to you, im sure we've all had our fair share in animals getting at something in our collection. I agree with clue on the bird angle... I too have heard of birds taking nips out of some cps especially when close to plaves they can drink and bathe.

I think the chickenwire or mesh grate suggested for the top (secured to the top of the tank..etc) would be a great idea to try. I hope everything works out hun. Goodluck
 
Well turns out it was a false alarm. It took me 2 days but I actually found them. Luckily waterfowl don't frequent this area or I probably would have lost the plants. It looks like quite a few songbirds have been frequenting my tub to drink water and may even be bathing in it. They stirred up a lot of sediment and the Aldrovanda got completely covered in it down at the bottom. I poked through the entire tub several times before I found one. I'll have to put up a cage or something to try to keep the birds out for the time being.

I am a bit worried about the winter though. There are only a couple plants in the tub currently and I've read that Aldrovanda turions have a pretty low winter survival rate. Is there anything I can do to improve their chances?
 
Oh great! Thats great to hear you found them alive and well. Unfortunatly i haven't had the luck of getting any form of Aldrovanda :( yet. But im sure others on here will have some great advice on what u could do to keep them thriving in cooler months. Goodluck hun
 
Great to hear! Tadpoles was my guess at first, but it was birds all along!:-)). Where did you get this aldrovanda?
 
I found a guy on Facebook selling them.
 
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