E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Nuphar variegata Durand (Durand) E.O. Beal
variegated yellow pond-lily (spatterdock; yellow pond-lily)
Nymphaeaceae (Water-lily family)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

© Michael Wigle  Email the photographer   (Photo ID #13559)

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Distribution of Nuphar variegata
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Species Information

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General:
Perennial aquatic herb from a thick large rhizome; stems thick, fleshy, submerged or emersed, 1-2 m long.
Leaves:
Floating or submerged, long-stalked, the stalks 1-2 m long, appearing alternate from the rhizome, blades heart-shaped, 10-40 cm long, 6-30 cm wide, leathery.
Flowers:
Inflorescence of solitary, large, waxy, floating flowers on long stalks arising from the rhizome; petals yellow (with reddish or greenish tinges), 10-20, smaller than the sepals and the numerous yellow or reddish-purple stamens; sepals usually 6 or 9, 2.5-6 cm long, the outer greenish and shorter than the inner yellow ones, thick.
Fruits:
Berry-like capsules, oval, leathery, rupturing irregularly; seeds numerous in a jelly-like seed mass, the seeds 4-5 mm long.
Notes:
Two species occur in BC:

1. Sepals usually 6, 2.5-3.5 cm long; stamens yellow; seeds about 5 mm long................... N. variegata (Durand) Beal

1. Sepals usually 9, (3) 3.5-6 cm long; stamens reddish or purplish; seeds about 4 mm long................... N. polysepala (Engelm.) Beal

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Habitat / Range

Ponds and slow-moving streams in the lowland, steppe and montane zones; ssp. polysepala - common in BC south of 55æ N, rare in NW BC; ssp. variegata - infrequent in E BC; ssp. polysepala - N to AK, YT and NT and S to SD, CO and CA, ssp. variegata - N to YT and NT, E to NF and S to DE, OH, NE, MT and N ID.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Nuphar variegata

The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)

Site Information
Value / Class

Minimum

Average

Maximum

Elevation (metres) 667 706 1058
Slope Gradient (%) 0 0 1
Aspect (degrees)
[0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]
0
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR)
[0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic;
8 - hydric]
8 8 8
Modal Nutrient Regime
Class
B
Number of field plots
 species was recorded in:
10
Modal BEC Zone Class
SBS
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in: ICH(1), SBS(9)

Climate

The climate type for this species, as reported in the: "British Columbia plant species codes and selected attributes. Version 6 Database" (Meidinger et al. 2008), is not evaluated, unknown or variable.

Synonyms and Alternate Names

Nuphar advena var. fraterna (Mill. & Standl.) Standl.
Nuphar lutea subsp. variegata (Durand) E.O. Beal
Nuphar variegatum
Nymphaea fraterna G.S. Mill. & Standl.

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Additional Photo Sources

General References