Insect-eating Venus flytraps thrive in the Carolinas as hikers peek into their native ecosystem

CAROLINA BEACH, N.C. (AP) — Park ranger Jesse Anderson leads dozens of people on a weekly hike in North Carolina to see some of the most unique living things in the world — plants that supplement the nutrients they get from sunlight by digesting ants, flies and spiders.

But the Venus flytraps aren't like the human-size, ravenous and cruel Audrey in “Little Shop of Horrors.”

In the wild, Venus flytraps are the size of a lima bean and pose no harm to anything other than insects. Their special hairs snap their leaves together when brushed — but only twice in about 20 seconds or less to reduce the amount of false alarms by dust or rain.

Once inside, the insect is doomed to become plant food, Anderson said.

“It continues to trigger those hairs and the trap slowly closes and eventually starts releasing digestive enzymes to start breaking down the insect. And because they’re in nutrient-poor environments, they supplement their food with insects,” Anderson said.

Anderson's hike at Carolina Beach State Park on the southeast North Carolina coast also showcases other carnivorous plants. There are vase-shaped pitcher plants with liquid at the bottom that traps insects, then digests them. Butterworts and sundews attract insects with glistening leaves, then secrete an adhesive to trap them in place. Bladderworts work similarly to Venus flytraps.

And the hike is one of the few places to see Venus flytraps. The plant only grows in 12 counties in southeast North Carolina near Wilmington and a few nearby places in South Carolina, which made the organism the state's official carnivorous plant in 2023.

Now is an especially good time to take that hike. Venus flytraps bloom from about mid-May to mid-June, Anderson said.

The flytrap is a fragile plant that needs fire to survive. Wildfires in the pine forests where they grow clear off the denser overgrowth to provide the abundant sunlight the plants need.

They face two big enemies — poachers and development.

Harvesting the plants without permission is a felony in North Carolina and a misdemeanor in South Carolina. In 2016, a man was sentenced to 17 months in prison for taking nearly 1,000 Venus flytraps from game land in Hampstead, North Carolina.

And the flytraps live in one of the fastest-growing parts of the U.S., where neighborhoods and businesses have been built over their habitats. Most of the plants can now be found in preserves and other undisturbed areas.

Scientists counted only about 300,000 flytraps in the Carolinas several years ago.

While Anderson's hike is one of the few ways to see Venus flytraps in their natural environment, he said commercially grown plants can be found around in greenhouses and plant stores around the world and can thrive in homes in the right conditions

“They like nutrient-poor soils, and also they can’t stand typical well water or tap water. So they need things like rainwater or distilled water or versus osmosis,” Anderson said.

Venus flytraps need abundant sunlight and soils that are moist but not drenched. And they don't have to eat bugs if they can get enough nutrients from photosynthesis.

Please don't feed them hamburger meat — that's not what they eat. And try not to trigger the leaves shut without something to digest. That takes a lot of energy the plant needs to replace.

Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, contributed to this story.

A hornet sits on a pitcher plant at the Carolina Beach State Park on Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Carolina Beach, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Venus flytraps are seen at the Carolina Beach State Park on Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Carolina Beach, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Park ranger Jesse Anderson, right, speaks to visitors during a weekly carnivorous plant hike Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Carolina Beach, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Park ranger Jesse Anderson searches for Venus flytraps during a weekly carnivorous plant hike Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Carolina Beach, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Park ranger Jesse Anderson shows a pitcher plant to visitors during a weekly carnivorous plant hike Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Carolina Beach, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Park ranger Jesse Anderson speaks during a weekly carnivorous plant hike Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Carolina Beach, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

Park ranger Jesse Anderson speaks to visitors during a weekly carnivorous plant hike Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Carolina Beach, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)

NEW YORK (AP) — Chris Kreider had never been in the visiting locker room at Madison Square Garden before, and he needed someone to show him how to get on the ice for the Anaheim Ducks' morning skate.

It was an unfamiliar feeling for the NHL forward who spent 13 seasons with the New York Rangers, though he's not experiencing this alone. Kreider gets to do this alongside former Rangers captain Jacob Trouba, as they played their first game back at their old home arena Monday night since getting sent across the country in separate trades.

Kreider waved to the crowd and received a rousing standing ovation following a lengthy video tribute to one of the organization's longest-tenured players. Trouba did the same a few minutes later as fans cheered at the end of a slightly shorter video.

Trouba went to Anaheim just over a year ago, following pressure from the front office to waive his no-trade clause, and spent the summer processing the change. Kreider was dealt in June after similar pressure, so his runway has been much shorter with the whirlwind move and getting ready to play hockey for a new team.

“I don’t think it completely settled in over the offseason," Kreider said. "It didn’t feel real until I got on the plane to go to California and then I was kind of all about getting my bearings there, kind of endear myself to a new group and get to know everyone, get to know the whole setup. I haven’t really had time.”

Kreider spent a lot of time in New York since making his debut in the 2012 playoffs. His 883 regular-season games played over those 13 years rank sixth in franchise history, he is tied for the most power-play goals with 116 and is among the leaders in other statistical categories.

Trouba spent five-plus seasons with the Original Six club, two and change with the “C” on his chest as its leader. His wife pursuing a medical career led him to request a trade there from Winnipeg in 2019, the couple had a son while living in New York and returning to his old neighborhood Sunday night made the 31-year-old emotional.

“There’s so much I learned through my time here about myself, about hockey, about starting a family,” Trouba said. "Just the growth of, I guess, the group and the team while I was here, and growth of myself is something that I look back on most.”

Their exits, which followed respected forward Barclay Goodrow getting put on waivers in the summer of 2024 and landing in San Jose, were unceremonious. General manager Chris Drury sent a memo to the rest of the league's teams spelling out that Trouba and Kreider were available, and each player ended up with the Ducks as the Rangers sought to change a mix that had come up short of winning the Stanley Cup.

Trouba conceded the process of being unwanted and then shipped away from a place he wanted to remain was difficult.

“There’s people that make decisions above you, and at the end of the day you’re a hockey player and this is the job I signed up for,” the big-hitting defenseman said. “I think it’s unfortunate, I guess I’ll say. I didn’t enjoy it in the moment, but it’s just a small piece of what was a very, very memorable and impactful 5 1/2 years for me.”

Kreider was cheered the moment he stepped on the ice for warmups. And while his No. 20 might have hung from the rafters at the Garden one day had he played his whole career there, prefers not to look back in anger.

“You try not to live in the past,” Kreider said. “It’s arrogant to think that you know what something is in that given moment. You don’t necessarily know if it’s going to be a good thing or a bad thing, so just take everything in stride.”

Kreider and Trouba are not the only ex-Rangers players now with Anaheim. They have former teammates Ryan Strome and Frank Vatrano to lean on, as well, and coach Joel Quenneville put all four in the starting lineup.

“It’s made the transition super easy — I mean easier — having Jacob there, having Frank, Stromer," Kreider said. "Having that familiarity certainly helps. The entire group’s been great.”

Quenneville, who had his own emotional return to Chicago in October, when he went back for the first time since being banned from the NHL for his role in a 2010 sexual assault scandal involving his Blackhawks, does not want to pretend to know how Kreider and Trouba should feel about theirs.

He does, however, know the experienced players have had a big impact on the Ducks quickly growing into a contender. They are in a playoff spot nearing the midway point of the season and are on track to end a seven-year drought.

“(Kreider) instantly got our power play rolling and our team rolling right off the bat,” Quenneville said. “And Troubs has gotten off to a great start to the season playing bigger minutes than we envisioned, and all of a sudden offensively he’s been productive in a lot of ways that we didn’t see that coming, either.”

AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL

Anaheim Ducks left wing Chris Kreider (20) skates during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)

Anaheim Ducks defenseman Jacob Trouba (65) skates during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)

Anaheim Ducks left wing Chris Kreider (20) skates during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)

Anaheim Ducks defenseman Jacob Trouba skates during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)

New York Rangers fans react to Anaheim Ducks' Chris Kreider skating during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)