Video! Sensitive Plant

The video below is of Mimosa pudica, or Sensitive Plant. I have early childhood memories of this plant - of touching the leaves and watching them retract on their own - but I can't remember where I encountered it. Though the plant is native to South and Central America, it is an invasive weed in Southeast Asia, so I can only guess I saw it when I lived there.

The leaves, like some other plants or flowers (Four O'Clocks and Morning Glories come to mind) will close when the sun goes down, and reopen at sunrise. However, they also will close up when touched. Though unusual, this is somewhat more common in the Mimosa genus.



Pudica is Latin for bashful or shrinking.

This is my first video upload and it's not really the greatest quality, but hit play to see the leaves withdraw after being touched.