Laganaphyllis simnovorii
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The Laganaphyllis Simnovorii (commonly known as the Cowplant) is a bizarre bovine vegetation that is large enough to swallow next-door neighbors whole. Friends will be hard-pressed to resist the tantalizing vine-cake of the carnivorous Laganaphyllis Simnovorii. The Cowplant is the career reward for the Natural Science career in The Sims 2.
Although not the Laganaphyllis Simnovorii in The Sims 2, a similar plant appeared in The Sims Bustin' Out for console. Simply called the "mutant plant", it may be a relative or precursor of the Cowplant.
In The Sims 3, the Cowplant appears as buyable non-living statue. It can also be seen on the gardening channel eating a woman.
Toddler(s) and children cannot interact with the Cowplant aside from the children being able to feed and milk it. They cannot take the vine-cake that the Cowplant offers.
Feeding
It can be fed by clicking on it and selecting "Feed". When this is done, the Sim will take out a Leg 'O' Lamb (this costs §35) and throw it to the plant, sometimes playing with it or teasing it first. This action is not automatic. Household Sims will ignore the plant unless it kills someone or the player directs them to interact with it.
However it will eat innocent Sims for lunch if not fed every 12 Sim hours. The Cowplant sticks a slice of cake out on its tongue, luring the Sim close to the plant; then eats the Sim. The Sim dies immediately, but unusually, the Grim Reaper doesn't appear, just a grave next to the Cowplant. A memory pops up in the memory box about this action.
This is a quick and easy way to kill off unwanted Sims. Controllable Sims can be ordered to "Grab Cake", and will die if not stopped.
If Open for Business is installed, the Cowplant can eat a Servo. This is one of the few ways in which a Servo can die.
Milking
After a Cowplant has its lunch (a Sim), members of the owner's household can milk the plant, and the "milk' is actually a life-extending drink similar to the Elixir of Life, extending the Sim's lifespan by five days.
Some Sims have a want to 'drink' a certain Sim that they are unhappy with. This refers to that Sim drinking the life essence of the offending Sim using the Cowplant. Drinking a Sim gives the drinker a special memory.
Other references
The final class in the Biology major is entitled "Senior Thesis: The Laganaphyllis Simnovorii".
In The Sims 3, the Science career's 5th level is "Carnivorous Plant Tender".
If Bon Voyage has been installed, you can go to the witch doctor's house in Twikki Island, where he has a tablet on the wall showing the Cowplant. Also, the hidden lot description says that the lot is standing ground against something...
Trivia
The Cowplant is reminiscent of Audrey II, the plant in the 1986 comedy horror film Little Shop of Horrors, starring Rick Moranis and Steve Martin. People on YouTube use the plant for spoofs of the film[citation needed].
In terms of color, the Cowplant also resembles the Tomeato (A crossbreed of the tomato plant, and a cow, which grew into a square shaped fruit) from The Dilbert Animated series. However, the Tomeato was designed as a harvestable crop which was easy to stack (Due to its rectangular shape), while the Laganaphyllis Simnovorii is a carnivorous plant.
Rumours
There have been several rumours in the Sims community about the famous Cow Plant re-appearing in The Sims Medieval, and it is believed that it could possibly be the creature in the pit, as shown in The Sims Townhall event. However, this is still speculative, and no confirmation of this theory has been given.
One thing which implies it could indeed be Laganaphyllis Simnovorii is the fact that it is fed by having meat thrown at it, in much the same way as the Cowplant is fed. Another similarity to the Cowplant is that it will happily eat Sims. although in The Sims Medieval, the creature will only eat Sims who have been pushed into the pit by one of the king's executioners.