Photo Gallery

a) Plant structure, geographical strains

b) Flowering and turions

c) Cultivation

d) Natural sites

e) (Re)introductions

f) Experiments

g) Various

Literature references

a) special papers on Aldrovanda

b) general publications with comments on Aldrovanda

Important papers available on-line (18 papers)

News and Views

Aldrovanda and aquatic Utricularia for sale!

HELP US! - Aldrovanda from Africa and tropical Asia is wanted!

Sponsorship of research

Persons involved with Aldrovanda

Aldrovanda vesiculosa links

Last update

01/01/2004  

The waterwheel plant, Aldrovanda vesiculosa L., is a remarkable aquatic carnivorous plant from the family Droseraceae. It is the only aquatic carnivorous plant with visible trap movement. Although it is distributed throughout a vast territory on all continents of the Old World, from northern Russia to southern Australia, it grows in limited areas and is rarely observed in the wild as it has very specific requirements with regards to the quality of its environment. For this reason, it is regarded as a critically endangered species of national flora in countries where it is naturally found. Unfortunately, in many other countries the waterwheel plant is now extinct. Its strange and still partly unclear ecological requirements are reflected in the many cultivation problems experienced by CP growers. However, this only serves to increase its attractiveness to many CP growers.

In the 1990's, a global restoration of interest in Aldrovanda took place, both from the side of layman growers and also research scientists. Cultivation of the red Australian plants has become a great hit. Aldrovanda is commonly available for sale and trade. We have realized that the increasing interest in Aldrovanda in the last decade comes along with only scattered data on its cultivation, distribution, and biology. Moreover, a great deal of data are commonly unavailable for laymen. 

The purpose of this website is to summarize all references on Aldrovanda in all languages published up to now, as well as to provide important and interesting photos of this plant, its cultivation, natural and artificial sites, and also information on its use as an experimental organism. Many important papers are available here on-line. However, many of the published references on Aldrovanda, especially scientific literature from the fields of biochemistry and physiology or very old literature, are not provided here. As well, we are not able to present all of the interesting and valuable photos of Aldrovanda which exist. However, we shall supplement this website with new and topical pieces of knowledge, literature, and photos as they become available.

Aldrovanda vesiculosa is a precious plant of the female gender which embodies a variety of features similar to a pretty woman - some inconsistencies, great demands, mystery, attractiveness, and uncommon grace. Such similarities are likely the reason why many people have fallen in love with Aldrovanda. We hope to be able to admire the uncommon grace of Aldrovanda at all its natural world sites in the future. We would be grateful for any input and information or additional pieces of literature on Aldrovanda which could supplement this website. We believe that the publication of certain data on  natural or artificial distributions of Aldrovanda will not result in the collecting of plants from these sites. After successful reintroductions in Switzerland, Poland, and the Czech Republic, we hope to see Aldrovanda re-introduced into countries from which it has vanished in the last few decades (esp. to Germany, France, and Italy). In doing this, its weak European populations will be strengthened.