The 30 or so species grow in wet terrestrial to semi-aquatic environments distributed throughout Africa and Central and South America.

The plants use highly modified underground leaves to attract, trap and digest minute microfauna, particularly protozoans.

[2] Several species in the genus, including G. margaretae, G. aurea, and G. tuberosa, possess the smallest known genomes of all flowering plants.

[7] The lower lip forms a palate that functions as the guide to the spur that contains the nectar by providing olfactory and mechanical stimuli for nearby pollinators like bees and flies.

At a microscopic level, the palate has glandular trichomes,[8] which are small hairs that store and secrete secondary metabolites in order to provide protection from herbivory.

The hollow cylinder section leading from the bifurcation to the utricle is likewise lined with upward-pointing curved hairs.

[10] Phosphatase has been detected in all types of glands, allowing for the breakdown of prey and uptake of phosphorus in low-nutrient soils.

[13] The genus was discovered by Augustin François César Prouvençal de Saint-Hilaire,[2] who in 1833 described four species: G. aurea, G. filiformis, G. pygmaea, and G. violacea.

More than one genome size has been measured in G. aurea and G. repens, suggesting that di- and tetraploid individuals exist.

[5] Genlisea traps host a microbe community of bacteria (dominant species consisting of anaerobic Clostridium sp.