Utricularia macrorhiza
{{Short description|Species of carnivorous plant}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Utricularia macrorhiza flower.jpg
| status = {{TNCStatus}}
| status_system = TNC
| status_ref = {{Cite NatureServe |date=6 December 2024 |id=2.139332 |title=Utricularia macrorhiza |access-date=28 December 2024}}
| genus = Utricularia
| display_parents = 2
| parent = Utricularia sect. Utricularia
| species = macrorhiza
| authority = Leconte
| synonyms_ref = {{cite POWO |id=526896-1 |title=Utricularia macrorhiza Leconte |access-date=27 December 2024}}
| synonyms = {{Collapsible list | {{Species list
| Lentibularia vulgaris var. americana | (A.Gray) Nieuwl. & Lunell
| Megopiza macrorhiza | (Leconte) Raf.
| Utricularia grandiflora | M.Martens
| Utricularia intermedia var. robbinsii | Alph.Wood
| Utricularia robbinsii | (Alph.Wood) Alph.Wood
| Utricularia siakujiiensis | S.Nakaj.
| Utricularia vulgaris var. americana | A.Gray
| Utricularia vulgaris subsp. macrorhiza | (Leconte) R.T.Clausen
}}
}}
}}
Utricularia macrorhiza, the common bladderwort,{{PLANTS|taxon=Utricularia macrorhiza|symbol=UTMA|access-date=2008-12-28}} is a perennial suspended aquatic carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. U. macrorhiza is native to North America and eastern temperate Asia.Taylor, Peter. (1989). The genus Utricularia - a taxonomic monograph. Kew Bulletin Additional Series XIV: London.
Description
U. macrorhiza is a floating plant with six to twenty large, bilaterally symmetrical, yellow flowers that appear in June, July, and August, and are held on an erect stem.{{Cite web|url=https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=UTMA|title=Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin|website=www.wildflower.org|access-date=2018-10-16}} U. macrorhiza is distinguished from other similar species by its flowers, which are larger than those found on any other bladderwort.
The bladders which give common bladderwort its name are used to trap and consume prey. Small organisms trigger the hairs on the pores of the bladder as they brush against it, causing the pore to open inward, allowing a rush of water into the bladder which pulls the prey in as well. The pore immediately closes behind the prey, which is then digested by enzymes within the bladder. The process of trapping the prey from opening to closing the pore takes place in 0.002 seconds. If large prey becomes stuck in the pore, the prey is digested by the enzymes bit by bit until the pore closes again.
Distribution
In North America, U. macrorhiza is found throughout the United States and Canada. In this range, it is found mostly in ponds and lakes, but also in slow-moving streams and rivers. It shares the northern half of its range with a similar, related species, U. minor, lesser bladderwort.
See also
References
{{Commons}}
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External links
- [https://plants.usda.gov/java/nameSearch?keywordquery=Utricularia+macrorhiza&mode=sciname&submit.x=11&submit.y=12 USDA plant profile]
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Category:Carnivorous plants of Asia
Category:Carnivorous plants of North America
Category:Flora of the United States
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