Lemna trisulca
Species of flowering plant
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lemna trisulca L. (syn. Staurogeton trisulcus (L.) Schur; star duckweed;[1] ivy-leaved duckweed[2]) is a species of aquatic plants in the arum family Araceae. It has a subcosmopolitan distribution. Unlike other duckweeds, it has submerged rather than floating fronds (up to 12–14 m (39–46 ft) below the surface[3]), except when flowering or fruiting. Also unlike other duckweeds, a large number of fronds remain attached to each other at a time.
| Lemna trisulca | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Embryophytes |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Spermatophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Alismatales |
| Family: | Araceae |
| Genus: | Lemna |
| Species: | L. trisulca |
| Binomial name | |
| Lemna trisulca | |
Description
The fronds usually grow submerged and are oblong-lanceolate in shape and are up to 14 mm long. They are blunt at the end and taper to a tail-like stalk at the other.[4]
The flowering fronds are smaller than the vegetative fronds and somewhat curl up from under the water to the surface to present the flowers [5] (to a casual look this may cause the flowering fronds to resemble reddened duckweeds more of the L. minor format with white flower spots, with obvious greener L. trisulca directly beneath); illustration photo of flowers.
Distribution
This species is widely distributed in cool-temperate regions, including Great Britain and Ireland,[6][7] Asia (Bangladesh, China (Northern, Western, Southern [Yunnan]), Taiwan, India (Eastern, Northern), Indonesia (Sumatra, New Guinea), Brunei, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, Philippines); Europe; Oceania; N. America; and S. America.[8]
