The Foreign Service Journal, June 2022

Please submit your favorite, recent photo- graph to be considered for Local Lens. Images must be high resolution (at least 300 dpi at 8” x 10”, or 1 MB or larger) and must not be in print elsewhere. Include a short description of the scene/event, as well as your name, brief biodata and the type of camera used. Send to locallens@afsa.org . 102 JUNE 2022 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL LOCAL LENS BY AMANDA OGDEN n MAHE, SEYCHELLES I took this photo of pitcher plants at the summit of the Copolia Trail inMorne National Park onMahé Island during a recent R&R trip to the Seychelles—a country I didn’t knowmuch about, aside from tropical beaches, but found to be a fascinating mix of Indian, African and European influences. The endemic pitcher plant (Nepen- thes pervillei) is carnivorous—attracting, capturing, killing and digesting insects. The lid keeps rainfall fromdiluting the acidic digestive fluid, and its color catches the insect’s attention. The collar secretes nectar to lure the insect inside, where the waxy inner walls of the pitcher cause it to slip and fall to its demise in the enzyme acid at the base. n Amanda Ogden is on her first Foreign Service tour, serving as the office manage- ment specialist in the political section at Embassy Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. She took the photo with her iPhone8+.