MORE THAN 225 SPECIES

(The genus Biovularia and Polypompholyx were incorporated to the Utricularia), horticultural hybrids and cultivars

USUAL NAME

Bladderwort

FAMILY

Lentibulariaceae

 
History and etymology

One of these plant is famous in Europe since a long time, first named Millefolium palustris, she will became later Lentibularia by S. Vaillant. C. Linneus named the genus Utricularia in 1753. In 1 857, Cohn observed numerous preys catched by the traps ; in 1875, C. Darwin noted the absorption by the bladders of the compounds from the prey decomposition. In 1910, Luetzelburg showed the enzymatic digestion. The name come from the Utriculus which means "small bladder", making en allusion to the traps appearance.

Distribution

The large repartition of the genus allow to observe the species en th five continents, except the polar and desrertic lands.

Biotope

They like the pools, ponds, backwaters of rivers, bogs, banks of streams, wet rocks, mossy places, and very rarely (for Utricularia humboldtii) the rosette leaves of some water-filled bromeliads. The soils are often poor, acidic or alkaline for terrestrial pecies. Aquatic or semi-aquatic Utricularia grow in water of the same nature. The climates are very different given the distribution of plants, they range from cold regions to the tropics. Some carnivorous genuss coexist: Drosera, Pinguicula, Sarracenia.

Description

Herbaceous plants, rootless, perennial or annual. They may be terrestrial, aquatic, semi-aquatic or epiphytic. Their size varies from few millimeters to several tens of centimeters. The leaves are of two kinds: the first green whose shape (strips, reniform, rhombic ...) and size vary among species. Seconds translucent and very small sized, are shaped like small bottles.

Traps are formed by the leaves of the second type which function as "vacuum cleaners".

The prey touch sensitive hairs that drive the opening of a valve, a suction to the inside of the pocket occurs, followed by rapid digestion.

Utricularia resupinata

Utricularia tenella