Nuphar polysepala Engelm (Engelm.) E.O. Beal
Rocky Mountain pond-lily (spatterdock; yellow pond-lily)
Nymphaeaceae (Water-lily family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Rocky Mountain pond-lily (spatterdock; yellow pond-lily)
Nymphaeaceae (Water-lily family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
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
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Nuphar polysepala
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)
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 |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
633 | 1 | 1735 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
0 | 0 | 20 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
93 | 40 | 213 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
7 | 5 | 8 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
D | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
120 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
CWH | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
CDF(18), CWH(61), ESSF(3), ICH(12), IDF(2), MH(1), MS(4), PP(1), SBPS(10), SBS(6) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and 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.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Nuphar lutea subsp. polysepala (Engelm.) E.O. Beal
Nuphar polysepalum
Nymphaea polysepala (Engelm.) Greene
Nymphozanthus polysepalus (Engelm.) Fernald