Re: big bladders

Joachim Nerz (joachim.nerz@student.uni-tuebingen.de)
Wed, 1 Feb 1995 09:19:37 +0100 (MEZ)

On Tue, 31 Jan 1995, Christopher Waldrop wrote:

> > U. vulgaris has almost as big bladders (up to 5 mm) as U.
> > humboldtii, and they're easier to show them because it's aquatic.
> > Unfortunately for you, I
>
>
> I thought _U. humboldtii_ was an aquatic, although there seems to be
> some confusion. I've heard that _U. humboldtii_ grows in the pitcher
> of Brocchinia reducta, although the California Carnivores growing
> guide describes it as an Australian native.
>

Utricularia humboldtii is no Australian native, it occurs in the
Guyana-highland shield in Venezuela. It is really growing in the
leaf-axils of the huge Broccinia tatei (not B. reducta), and in very,
very rare cases you can find it in nature also in Heliamphora pitchers :-).
It is very funny, because you can find populations of it, which are just
growing in Broccinia (e.g. at Cerro Duida) where you never (!) will find
it growing in soil and other populations (e.g. at the foot of
Roraima), where the same species is growing only in swampy soil, here you
cannot find it in Broccinia. Such populations differ slightly in it's
appearance; you can grow it both in soil (you do not need a Broccinia, to
grow it :-) ).

The bladders of it are realy enormous, at least 5-6 mm in diameter; you
can also find large bladders in U. tricolor, which is easier to grow then
U. humboldtii.

Bye

Joe N.