Nymphaea paganuccii

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Nymphaea paganuccii is a waterlily that is native only to Brazil. It grows as an aquatic herb with rounded to elliptical leaves that float on the surface, about 15–20 cm long and 10–17 cm wide. The plant does not produce runners, and its flowers open at night, floating on the water. Seeds are very small, around 1 mm long.

This species lives in lagoons in the Amazon rainforest, especially a lagoon along the Tapajós River near Santarém, Pará, at depths of about 1–3 meters. Water depth here changes with rainfall, and a dry period occurs from August to December. Flowering and fruiting have been observed in July. Nymphaea paganuccii can be found alongside other Nymphaea species such as N. amazonum, N. pedersenii, N. rapinii, and N. lingulata. Beetles of the Cyclocephala genus visit the flowers and are involved in pollination, sometimes getting trapped inside.

Taxonomically, it belongs to the genus Nymphaea, subgenus Hydrocallis. The species was described in 2021 by C. T. Lima and Ana Maria Giulietti, and the name paganuccii honors Professor Luciano Paganucci de Queiroz.