Utricularia, commonly and collectively called the bladderworts, is a genus of carnivorous plants consisting of approximately 233 species. They occur in fresh water and wet soil as terrestrial or aquatic species across every continent except Antarctica. Utricularia are cultivated for their flowers, which are often compared with those of snapdragons and orchids, especially amongst carnivorous plant enthusiasts.
Utricularia subulata, the zigzag bladderwort, is a small annual, terrestrial carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. It is the most widely distributed species in the genus, being almost pantropical.
Utricularia inflata, commonly known as the swollen bladderwort, inflated bladderwort, or large floating bladderwort, is a large suspended aquatic carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. It is a perennial that is native to the southeastern coastal plains of the United States. It has often been confused with U. radiata, which is similar but smaller than U. inflata. Since 1980, U. inflata has been reported to exist in locations beyond its traditional range, such as the Adirondack Mountains in New York, southeastern Massachusetts, and in Washington State. Studies on the populations in the Adirondacks suggest that an introduction of U. inflata to a location where it naturalizes can lead to altered sediment chemistry by reducing the net primary productivity of native species. It is also listed by the state of Washington as a problematic species because of the dense mat-forming habit of this aquatic Utricularia. It is one of the few carnivorous plants that can be invasive.
Utricularia inflexa is a medium to large sized suspended aquatic carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. It is probably a perennial plant. U. inflexa is endemic to Africa and the Indian subcontinent.
Utricularia minor, the lesser bladderwort, is a small, perennial carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. It is usually found affixed to the substrate but it can also survive suspended in a body of water. U. minor is a circumboreal species and is found in North America, Asia, and Europe.
Utricularia intermedia, the flatleaf bladderwort or intermediate bladderwort is a small, perennial carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. It is usually found affixed to the substrate but it can also survive suspended in a body of water. U. intermedia is a circumboreal species and is found in North America, Asia, and Europe.
Utricularia radiata, the little floating bladderwort, is a medium-sized suspended aquatic carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. U. radiata is endemic to North America.
Utricularia stygia, the arctic bladderwort or Northern bladderwort, is an affixed aquatic carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. U. stygia is native to northern Europe and North America. This species was originally published by Göran Thor in 1987 but the description was not in Latin and was therefore nomenclaturally invalid. Thor validly published the species a year later. The cited difference that separates U. stygia from U. ochroleuca is the shape of the tiny quadrifid glands inside the bladders, specifically at which angle the "arms" of these glands diverge from one another. Thor, when working on the Utricularia of Sweden noted that this distinction alone allowed for consistent species identification. Both Barry Rice and Peter Taylor have expressed concerns regarding how this method applies to other populations around the world.
Utricularia purpurea, the eastern purple bladderwort, is a medium-sized suspended aquatic carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. U. purpurea is endemic to North and Central America. It has been suggested that U. purpurea may have partially lost its appetite for carnivory. Richards (2001) did an extensive study in the field on it and noted that trapping rates of the usual Utricularia prey were significantly lower than in other species in the genus. Richards concludes that this species can still trap and digest arthropod prey in its specialized bladder traps, but does so sparingly. Instead, it harbors a community of algae, zooplankton, and debris in the bladders that indicates U. purpurea favors a mutualistic interaction in place of a predator–prey relationship.
Utricularia podadena is a small, probably perennial, terrestrial carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia and is the only member of Utricularia sect. Candollea. U. podadena is endemic to Malawi and Mozambique, being known only from the type location in Malawi and from one other collection in Mozambique. As of Peter Taylor's 1989 monograph on the genus, more recent efforts to locate this species have failed. It was originally published and described by Taylor in 1964 and placed in its own section, Candollea, in 1986. It grows as a terrestrial plant in marshy grasslands in the presence of Loudetia species at altitudes of around 1,000 m (3,281 ft). It flowers in July. It is a very distinct plant in the genus with the long stipitate glandular trichomes covering the flower. Its affinities within the genus are not clear.
Utricularia geoffrayi is a small, probably perennial, terrestrial carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. U. geoffrayi is native to Indochina and can be found in Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam. It was originally published and described by François Pellegrin in 1920. It grows as a terrestrial plant among short grasses in or around rice fields at altitudes from sea level to 1,300 m (4,265 ft). It has been collected in flower between September and December.
Peter Geoffrey Taylor (1926–2011) was a British botanist who worked at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew throughout his career in botany. Taylor was born in 1926 and joined the staff of the herbarium at Kew in 1948. He published his first new species, Utricularia pentadactyla, in 1954. In 1973, Taylor was appointed curator of the orchid division of the herbarium and, according to Kew, "under his direction, orchid taxonomy was revitalised and its horticultural contacts strengthened."
Utricularia pubescens is a small to medium-sized, probably annual, terrestrial or lithophytic carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia and is the only member of Utricularia sect. Lloydia. U. pubescens is native to India, tropical Africa, and Central and South America. It was originally published and described by James Edward Smith in 1819 and placed in its own section, Lloydia, by Peter Taylor in 1986. It grows as a terrestrial or lithophytic plant in boggy grasslands in damp peaty soils at altitudes from sea level to 1,900 m (6,234 ft). This species possesses small peltate leaves, which are diagnostic for this species in the genus.
Utricularia juncea, the southern bladderwort, is a small to medium sized, probably perennial carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. U. juncea is native to Central, South, and North America. It grows as a terrestrial plant in marshes, swamps, and pools in shallow waters, mostly at lower altitudes. It was originally described and published by Martin Vahl in 1804.
Utricularia simulans, the fringed bladderwort, is a small to medium-sized, probably perennial, carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. U. simulans is native to tropical Africa and the Americas. It grows as a terrestrial plant in damp, sandy soils in open savanna at altitudes from near sea level to 1,575 m (5,167 ft). U. simulans was originally described and published by Robert Knud Friedrich Pilger in 1914.
Utricularia cecilii is a small annual carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. It is endemic to an area around Mangalore in Karnataka state and is only known from the type location and one other collection from the same region. U. cecilii grows as a terrestrial plant in damp, shallow soils over laterite. It flowers in August and September. U. cecilii was originally described and published by Peter Taylor in 1984. This species is named in honor of Father Cecil Saldanha S.J., who had shown Taylor this species in 1981.
Utricularia uliginosa, the Asian bladderwort, is a small annual carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. It is native to Southeast Asia, Oceania, and Australia. U. uliginosa grows as a terrestrial or subaquatic plant in seasonally flooded shallow pools with sandy soils or on banks and among rocky stream beds at low altitudes. It was originally described by Martin Vahl in 1804.
Utricularia vitellina is a small or very small, probably perennial carnivorous plant that belongs to the genus Utricularia. It is endemic to Peninsular Malaysia and is only known from two mountain peaks that are over 100 km (62.1 mi) apart. U. vitellina grows as a terrestrial plant in peaty stream banks among bryophytes at altitudes from 1,500 m (4,921 ft) to 2,100 m (6,890 ft). It was originally described by Henry Nicholas Ridley in 1923. It is distinct from the rest of the species in section Oligocista by not having a basal swelling of the lower corolla lip.
The Genus Utricularia: A Taxonomic Monograph is a monograph by Peter Taylor on the carnivorous plant genus Utricularia, the bladderworts. It was published in 1989 by Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) as the fourteenth entry in the Kew Bulletin Additional Series. It was reprinted for The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in 1994.
