Carnivorous <i>Nepenthes</i> pitcher plants combine common developmental processes to make a complex epidermal trapping surface

We demonstrate that the complex surface micro-topography of the Nepenthes pitcher rim develops by sequentially combining widespread, evolutionarily conserved epidermal patterning processes in a new way. This makes the Nepenthes trap rim an excellent model for studying epidermal patterning mechanisms in leaves.