The East Indian pitcher plant (Nepenthes rajah), a vine with pitcher-shaped leaves that can be as tall as 17 inches and as wide as 10 inches, has the largest traps. Growing in the jungles of southeastern Asia, the vine seldom grows longer than 6 feet. Some species of the insect-eating pitcher plant have longer vines—to 50 feet in length —but smaller trapping leaves.
Each tubular leaf on the vine is hollow and lined with downward-pointing hairs. An insect that lands on the plant inevitably falls into the bottom of the pitcher, where digestive juices and water have accumulated. The captured insects provide nitrogen for the photosynthetic plant, which tends to grow in very poor soil. This unusual plant is highly endangered; the International Carnivorous Plant Society is spearheading a recovery program.