Hydrocleys nymphoides
Description
Herbs to 50 cm tall; stolons to 45 cm long. Petiole 1.5-40 cm long, ca. 1 cm wide, sheathing base to 8.5 cm long; blade broadly ovate to orbicular, 1.4-11.9 x 0.9-10.6 cm, apex obtuse to slightly mucronate, base cordate, primary veins 5-9. Inflorescence with 1-6 flowers, proliferating with leaves and stolons; peduncle to 30 cm long, 1.5-6 mm diam.; bracts elliptic, 2-4.5 x 0.4-1 cm, apex obtuse; pedicels spreading, 3.5-17.5 cm long, 1.5-6 mm diam.Flowers ca. 6.5 cm wide; sepals 1.3-2.8 x 0.7-1.3 cm, apex obtuse, without midvein; petals pale yellow to white with yellow base, spreading, longer than sepals, 2.3-2.6 x 3.8-4.1 cm; stamens 20-25, in 2 or more series, filaments 5-5.5 mm long, anthers 5.5-6 x ca. 0.5 mm, staminodia numerous; carpels 5-8, ca. 1 cm long. Fruit 1-1.5 x 0.2-0.35 cm, with 0.35-0.55 cm long beak; seeds ca. 1 mm long, sparsely glandular pubescent, glandular trichomes ca. 0.15 mm long, 150-200 μ apart, not present on every epidermal cell of seed coat.
Distribution
Argentina present, Eastern and southern Brazil present, Guianas present present, Southern America: Bolivia (Bolivia present); Colombia (Colombia present); Ecuador (Ecuador present); Guatemala (Guatemala present), outside the Amazon drainage present, southern United States of America
Widely distributed, mostly outside the Amazon drainage, Guatemala, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, east to the Guianas, eastern and southern Brazil and Argentina; naturalized in the southern United States of America; over 100 collections studied, 22 from the Guianas (GU: 12; SU: 10).