| Aldrovanda Temporal range: Paleocene - Recent |
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|---|---|
| Aldrovanda vesiculosa | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Core eudicots |
| Order: | Caryophyllales |
| Family: | Droseraceae |
| Genus: | Aldrovanda L. |
| Species | |
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See text. |
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Aldrovanda ( /ældrəˈvændə/) is a genus of carnivorous plants encompassing one extant species (Aldrovanda vesiculosa) and numerous extinct taxa. The genus is named in honor of the Italian naturalist Ulisse Aldrovandi, the founder of the Botanical Garden of Bologna, Orto Botanico dell'Università di Bologna[1].
The extinct species are known only from fossil pollen and seeds,[2] with the exception of A. inopinata which is also known from fossilised laminae.[3] Aldrovanda species are thought to be the evolutionary descendants of Palaeoaldrovanda splendens from the Late Cretaceous.
The organ of carnivory in Aldrovanda is the snap trap. Snap traps are only found in one other carnivorous plant genus, Dionaea, which includes the commonly known Venus flytrap. Aldrovanda and Dionaea have been shown to share a most recent common ancestor by analysis of combined nuclear and chloroplast DNA sequences.[4][5] When sequences of chloroplast DNA of Aldrovanda, Dionaea, and Drosera were analyzed alone, however, Aldrovanda and Drosera (sundews) were shown to share a most recent common ancestor.[6] It has been proposed that this discrepancy between gene trees based on nuclear and cytoplasmic DNA analyses can be explained by chloroplast capture,[6] as similar inconsistencies have been explained by this phenomenon.[7][8]
Several undescribed species are also known.
The distinctions between the various named species have been criticised,[9] although SEM analysis of the seed structures seems to confirm the existence of different species.[10]
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