Pistia stratiotes

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Distribution Map: Based on vouchered plant specimens only. View county names by placing the mouse cursor over a particular county.

Species Distribution Map
Family:ARACEAE
Species:Pistia stratiotes L.
Common Name:Water Lettuce; Water Bonnet
Habitat:**
Associated Ecological Communities:**
Growth Habit:Herb
Duration:Perennial
Category:Vascular
USDA Symbol:PIST2
Plant Notes:Water Lettuce is an introduced aquatic perennial in the Arum family (Araceae). It occurs in tropical and warm temperate areas throughout the world. The native range of Water Lettuce is uncertain. It is currently thought to be native from southern Florida and Texas, south to South America. It is depicted in Egyptian hieroglyphics and was reported by the Greek botanist Theophrastus (371-287 BC) from the Nile river area of Africa, possible indicating that it was also native to that area. Water Lettuce occurs in ponds and lakes, in canals, in drainage ditches, and in slow moving streams and rivers. It is also widely cultivated as an ornamental. Water Lettuce is a free-floating herbaceous aquatic perennial. The leaves form a compact floating rosette with a dense mass of feathery roots extending down into the water. The leaves are sessile, obovate to spatulate in outline, densely pubescent, with entire margins. The apex of the leaf is rounded or notched. The leaves are grayish-green above and lighter green below. The veins are raised on the lower surface of the leaf. Water Lettuce reproduces primarily by forming short stolons that end in a plantlet. Flowers are produced on short peduncles from the axils of the leaves. The inflorescence consists of a pubescent, tubular green spathe that surrounds the flowers. The spathe is closed at the base and open at the top. The flowers are unisexual in a spadix. The single female flower is terminal on the spadix with several male flowers below. The greenish flowers lack a perianth. The fruit is a greenish berry with 4-10 seed. Water Lettuce is a serious pest in many areas of the world. It clogs waterways and serves as a breeding site for mosquitoes and other insects. A South American beetle (Neohydronomus affinis) and Asian moth (Samea multiplicalis) feed on the plants and have been used as biological control agents.—A. Diamond.
Taxonomic Notes:**
Status:Not Native, OBL (NWI), G5 (Global Rank)
References:**

** Not applicable or data not available.

Classification

FamilyARACEAE - Arum family
Genus Pistia
Species Pistia stratiotes L. - Water Lettuce; Water Bonnet

Citation

Citation Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 963. 1753.
Basionym: **
Type: "Kodda-pail" in Rheede, Hort. Malab., 11: 63, t. 32, 1692. Lectotypified by Suresh et al., Taxon 32: 127. 1983.

** Not applicable or data not available.

Synonyms

SynonymFull CitationBasionymType
Apiospermum obcordatum Apiospermum obcordatum Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 351. 1853, nom. illegit.Pistia obcordata Schleiden 1838, nom. illegit.; Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus 1753. 
Limnonesis commutata Limnonesis commutata (Schleiden) Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 351-352. 1853.Pistia commutata Schleiden 1838. 
Limnonesis friedrichsthaliana Limnonesis friedrichsthaliana Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 351-352. 1853.  
Pistia aegyptiaca Pistia aegyptiaca Schleiden, Allg. Gartenzeitung 6: 19. 1838.  
Pistia aethiopica Pistia aethiopica Fenzl ex Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 354. 1853. ETHIOPIA
Pistia africana Pistia africana C. Presl, Epimel. Bot. 240. 1851. SOUTH AFRICA
Pistia amazonica Pistia amazonica C. Presl, Epimel. Bot. 240. 1851. BRAZIL
Pistia brasiliensis Pistia brasiliensis Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 356. 1853. BRAZIL
Pistia commutata Pistia commutata Schleiden, Allg. Gartenzeitung 6: 20. 1838.  
Pistia crispata Pistia crispata Blume, Rumphia 1: 78. 1836.  
Pistia cumingii Pistia cumingii Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 356. 1853.  
Pistia gardneri Pistia gardneri Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 356. 1853. BRAZIL
Pistia horkeliana Pistia horkeliana Miquel, Linnaea 18: 81. 1844. SURINAM
Pistia leprieurii Pistia leprieurii Blume, Rumphia 1: 79. 1836.  
Pistia linguaeformis Pistia linguaeformis Blume, Rumphia 1: 78. 1836.  
Pistia minor Pistia minor Blume, Rumphia 1: 78. 1836.  
Pistia natalensis Pistia natalensis Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 354. 1853.  
Pistia obcordata Pistia obcordata Schleiden, Allg. Gartenzeitung 6: 20. 1838, nom. illegit.Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus 1753. 
Pistia occidentalis Pistia occidentalis Blume, Rumphia 1: 79. 1836. BARBADOS: Without data (lectotype: Sloane, Voy. Jamaica 1: t. 2(2). 1707). Lectotypified by Acevedo-Rodríguez & Nicolson, in Acevedo-Rodríguez & M. T. Strong, Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 52: 44. 2005.
Pistia schleideniana Pistia schleideniana Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 356. 1853.  
Pistia spathulata Pistia spathulata Michaux, Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 162. 1803.  
Pistia stratiotes var. spathulata Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus, var. spathulata (Michaux) Engler, in Martius, Fl. Bras. 3(2): 214. 1878.Pistia spathulata Michaux 1803. 
Pistia stratiotes var. obcordata Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus, var. obcordata Engler, in Martius, Fl. Bras. 3(2): 214. 1878, nom. inadmiss.Pistia obcordata Schleiden 1838, nom. illegit.; Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus 1753. 
Pistia texensis Pistia texensis Klotzsch, Abh. Königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin 1852: 356. 1853. TEXAS
Pistia turpinii Pistia turpinii Blume, Rumphia 1: 79. 1836.  
Pistia weigeltiana Pistia weigeltiana C. Presl, Epimel. Bot. 240. 1851. SURINAM
Zala asiatica Zala asiatica Loureiro, Fl. Cochinch. 405. 1790, nom. illegit.Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus 1753. 

Specimens and Distribution

This species has been reported in the following counties by the herbaria listed. An overview of the individual specimens are provided in the table that follows. Click on the accession number to view details; click on column headers to sort; choose a county or herbaria to filter the specimen data.

Counties included on distribution map: Autauga, Chilton, Coffee, Conecuh, Coosa, Elmore, Jefferson, Lee, Shelby, Walker

Counties represented by specimen data listed below:

Herbaria represented by specimen data listed below: ALNHS, AMAL, AUA, SAMF, TROY, UNA, UWAL

Range of years during which specimens were collected: -

Barcode / Accession No. County Coll. Date Collector &
Collection No.		 Herbarium &
Herbarium Name Used		 Image
AUA000033877 Conecuh 25 Dec 2002 Diamond, Alvin R.
13766		 AUA
Pistia Stratiotes L.
TROY000049719 Autauga 15 Jun 2020 Parker, Matthew R.
1882		 TROY
Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus
UWAL0050559 Elmore 03 Sep 2018 Spaulding, Daniel D.
15645		 UWAL
Pistia stratiotes L.
ALNHS00007035 Elmore 30 Nov 2019 Brown, Sherry
SP#5033		 ALNHS
Pistia stratiotes L.
UWAL0051673 Walker 22 Sep 2018 Spaulding, Daniel D.
15726		 UWAL
Pistia stratiotes L.
SAMF0000211 Shelby 30 Nov 2003 Howell, W. Mike
s.n.		 SAMF
Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus
UWAL0038136 Shelby 07 Oct 2017 Spaulding, Daniel D.
15080		 UWAL
Pistia stratiotes L.
TROY000009937 Coffee s.d. Martin, Brian H.
s.n.		 TROY
Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus
UNA00060373 Conecuh 25 Dec 2002 Diamond, Alvin R.
13766		 UNA
Pistia stratiotes L.
AMAL00000065 Conecuh 25 Dec 2002 Diamond, Alvin R.
13766		 AMAL
Pistia stratiotes L.
ALNHS00005891 Chilton 19 Jul 2018 Barger, T. Wayne
SP#4096		 ALNHS
Pistia stratiotes L.
TROY000009938 Conecuh 25 Dec 2002 Diamond, Alvin R.
13766		 TROY
Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus
UWAL0051836 Jefferson 22 Sep 2018 Spaulding, Daniel D.
15733		 UWAL
Pistia stratiotes L.
UWAL0049816 Autauga 15 Jun 2020 Parker, Matthew R.
1882		 UWAL
Pistia stratiotes Linnaeus
UWAL0037812 Coosa 17 Sep 2017 Spaulding, Daniel D.
15035		 UWAL
Pistia stratiotes L.
ALNHS00004506 Lee 28 Feb 2017 Taylor, Chris T.
SP#2903		 ALNHS
Pistia stratiotes L.
UWAL0038128 Shelby 01 Oct 2017 Spaulding, Daniel D.
15070		 UWAL
Pistia stratiotes L.
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