VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Drosera rotundifolia | Round-Leaved Sundew 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Round-leaved sundew is commonly eaten by moose on the Kenai Peninsula of
Alaska in late May and June when in preflowering and early flowering
stages [34].

The wetland habitats that round-leaved sundew grows in are important
breeding and staging areas for migratory waterfowl and are rich in a
variety of wildlife [2].

Round-leaved sundew is present in wetland communities of western
Massachusetts and New York that are dominated by tall shrubs other than
alders (Alnus spp.).  These communities, especially the Cicero Swamp in
western Massachusetts, form the primary habitat for the endangered
eastern massasauga rattlesnake [33].

Round-leaved sundew may be an important food source for bog-dwelling
ants.  Ants are opportunistic predators of insects trapped in the leaves
of round-leaved sundew, scavenging up to two-thirds of the prey caught
by the plant [57].


PALATABILITY : 
NO-ENTRY


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


COVER VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Sundews (Drosera spp.) generally survive better than other carnivorous
plants and can naturally invade disturbed bog sites where other
vegetation has been removed, such as after roadside ditching or
burning [45].  Round-leaved sundew naturally regenerated in an Ontario
bog 24 years following the complete removal of the vegetation and peat
up to 6.6 feet (2 m) deep as a result of peat mining [25].




OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Leaves of round-leaved sundew can curdle milk and were used in Sweden to
make cheese.  Fresh leaves have also been used to treat warts.
Round-leaved sundew has been used as a remedy for respiratory ailments.
The plant contains an antibiotic effective against Streptococcus,
Staphylococcus, and Pneumococcus bacteria [43].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Clearing and drainage of peat bogs or swamps for peat mining, millpond
construction, access to timber, and agricultural purposes have resulted
in the decline of round-leaved sundew habitat by altering site
conditions in many areas [1,8,10,35,45].  Drainage also has an indirect
negative effect by diminishing the numbers of round-leaved sundew prey
that have aquatic larval stages [8].

Insectivorous plants, including round-leaved sundew, may add to the
nutrient pool on the nutrient-deficient sites where they most often grow
[40].  Round-leaved sundew itself apparently does not respond positively
to fertilization.  The application of nitrogen, phosphorous, or a
combination of the two to nutrient-poor sites negatively affected the
growth of a natural round-leaved sundew population on the Jefferson
National Forest, Virginia.  Plants were not as large, did not have as
many mature leaves, and did not produce as many flowers as plants on
sites without added nutrients.  The negative effect may have been the
product of ion toxicity [50].

Microhabitat segregation among different sundews (Drosera spp.) at the
same site may influence the types of prey captured.  Round-leaved sundew
and spatulate-leaved sundew (D. intermedia) in southern Germany occupied
different microhabitats and caught different kinds of insects, even
though they occurred together in the same bog [55].  Lists of insects
that have been captured as prey in the leaves of round-leaved sundew are
available [8,26,55].
                                                               
Grazing apparently does not eradicate round-leaved sundew; it has been
found on wet grasslands of the British Isles that have been grazed by
both cattle and sheep [8].  

Related categories for Species: Drosera rotundifolia | Round-Leaved Sundew