Utricularia gibba

Utricularia gibba, commonly known as the humped or floating bladderwort, is a small, mat-forming species of carnivorous aquatic bladderwort. It is found on all continents except Antarctica. U. gibba has an exceptionally small genome for a plant, despite having a typical number of genes. The sequencing of its DNA revealed only 3% non-coding material. Utricularia gibba has a vast geographic range and occurs naturally in the USA (all states except Alaska and the Rocky mountain states), Canada, Central and South America, Spain, Israel, most of Africa, most of Asia including China and Japan, New Guinea, Australia and Tasmania and the North Island of New Zealand. It grows in ponds and lakes or shallow water in ditches, pools, bogs, swamps, and marshes that may be still or slowly flowing. It can sometimes be found growing in deep water but will not flower unless the inflorescences are supported near the surface by living or dead vegetation. The waters in which it grows are typically poor in available phosphorus and nitrogen. It satisfies its nutrient requirements by capturing and digesting small aquatic prey – usually small invertebrates – in its bladder structures. Utricularia gibba is typically found growing at lower altitudes but can be found as high as 2,500 m (8,200 ft).