The video above describes and explains concerning the behavior of the plants in

response to their surroundings. Plant behaviors are defined as rapid morphological or

physiological responses to events, relative to the lifetime of an individual. The best
studied plant behaviors involve foraging for light, nutrients, and water by placing
organs where they can most efficiently harvest these resources. Plants obtain their
needs such as sunlight by climbing onto other trees and through competition with other
floras in their range of habitat. The act of climbing and creeping towards the sunlight is
the way plants talk to ‘ask’ for sunlight. They compete with other plants by pushing and
shoving as they struggle to capture sunlight. It is their way of ‘fighting for their own
needs’. Also, if they wanted water, they will slightly move towards the source of water.

Plants are not able to move as free and further as animals and we, human do in order
to obtain essential nutrients for their growth and run away from predators for the sake
of their survival. However, plants have specific ways in which they exhibit their desires
and needs for their own development. For example, when an unsuspecting insect roams
into a Venus Fly Trap, all it takes are two strip of hairs from the insect, as the prey, and
the plant will mercilessly trap the insect inside its mouth, locking it to digest it in order
to get the nutrients required for the plant’s growth. From this scenario, we know that
plants pose similarities with animals in terms of feeding because there is the prey-
predator relationship that exists between them. Plants have more advantage because
as they just sat still in a particular area, they can trick insects into approaching them
without any alarming signs that the plants are about to ‘gobble’ up those insects, unlike
mammal predators such as foxes which apparently already appear fierce and dangerous
to their prey, the mice. Another difference that plants and animals show is that plants,
being generally immobile through the naked eyes, let their prey approach them an
attack those prey while animals, approach and chase after their prey instead.

In this video, specifically at the 11th minute, a wheat and tomato seedlings were placed
on the same pot while a newly sprouted vine was planted between them. The vine will
decide on which it wants to grow towards to by its act or circling continuously back and
forth towards the wheat and also the tomato plants. Like a snake, plants are also able
to pick up the smell of other plants and determine if that specific plant is suitable and
the best fit for the vine itself to attach on. At last, the vine chose the tomato, a tender
plant as its victim.

Furthermore, many plants emit an emergency chemical when they realize they are
under attack. For instance, the smells of freshly cut grass, and flower as we place them
into the vase. Although those kind smells are pleasing to us, it is actually a sign from
the plants that we are causing them stress and trauma. Besides, the plants are calling
for help.

In terms of self defense, some plants have evolved some tactics to ensure their survival
and good growth. Basically, these plants are actively engaging with the environment in
which they live. They actively communicate and respond to the nutrients, the predators
and herbivores around them, thus it is a really dynamic system. A plant, when faced
with danger has its own way of communicating with their same species in the same
area, or with their neighbors, telling them to be careful and take preventive measures
from having to endure the same danger like it. For example, when we touch even just a
couple or two of a Mimosa plant’s leaves, the a whole stalk of Mimosa plant will ‘close’
its tiny leaves as response to the danger it faces.

A species of a tobacco plant, Nicotiana attenuata, or known as the wild tobacco is very
unique when it comes to self-defense skills. Like other plants, wild tobacco sit still thus
it needs to tune its physiology and biochemistry to what is going on and they need a
very sophisticated system of perception and response. Being able to respond quickly is
essential for wild tobacco because its seeds need wild fire to kick-start their growth and
they need hundreds of years for it to happen, thus, when the seeds finally emerge, they
will meet predators they never acknowledged before. The wild tobacco emits a toxin
when it is attacked by herbivores. This toxin is known as nicotine, in which any
organism with muscles will be affected, excluding the hornworm caterpillar. Despite
that, the clever wild tobacco has another method to deal with this situation. When the
caterpillar chews down the leaves of the plant, the plant will release an emergency
chemical messages that drifts up into the air. This chemical will call out the predators of
the caterpillars instead. Wild tobaccos pick up information about what species that
feeds on them by analyzing the saliva of the insect that was left after the insect was
done feasting on it. The saliva contains compounds regarding the identity of the plants’
predator. Not to forget, the sweet trichome, hair-like projections on the tobacco’s

leaves helps it to get rid of caterpillars. Hatched caterpillars consume these

sweet secretions. This will cause the caterpillars to develop a

distinctive odor. Scientists discovered that ants recognize the
caterpillar's odor to locate the larvae on the plants and carry them
back to their nests to feed their young and co-workers.

Since plants cannot run away like us homo-sapiens and other

organisms, they have to change the organism that they are as it is
critical to their survival. As mentioned before, hornworm
caterpillars are the culprit of the wild tobacco’s growth, however,
one of its species, the hawk moth turned out to also be the main
pollinator of the tobacco. This nocturnal pollinator is suitable for the
wild tobacco’s flower which blooms at dusk. The hawk moth gathers
the pollen from the flowers’ nectars and spread it to other plants.
The flowers opening at dawn, night and at daytime did not look or
smell they way they should. They differ in terms of nectar volume
sugar concentration. Not only the blooms of the nectar and floral
scent changed, but also the shape of the flowers. This is a way to
for the wild tobacco to stop communicating to its main pollinator
and rely on daytime pollinator, the hummingbird instead, because
the eggs of hummingbird do not hatch into caterpillars so there will
be no ‘betrayals’.
Meanwhile, plants also can eavesdrop on other chemical signals
and put up their own defense in advance. These acts of basing their
behavior on signals shows that plants really do interact with the
environment.