Mayaca fluviatilis Aubl.

Nomenclatural History

Mayaca fluviatilis Aubl. was first formally described by French botanist Jean Baptiste Christophore Fusée Aublet, who originally named it La mayaque des rivieres after collecting it from a tributary of the Sinnamary river in Guyana.

Vegetative Morphology

This species has soft, thin leaves arranged in a spiral pattern along white or pale green stems that commonly reach up to one meter in length.

Flower Pedicel and Size

Its flowers grow on individual stalks that are 2 to 5 cm long, and each flower is approximately 1 cm in diameter.

Generic Floral Characteristics

Like all other species in the genus Mayaca, the flowers of Mayaca fluviatilis are lateral, heterochlamydeous (meaning the perianth whorls have dissimilar sepals and petals), and isostemonous (meaning it has an equal number of stamens and petals).

Habitat

It is a submerged aquatic plant that can also grow in wet soil during dry seasons.

Morphological Similarity

When growing submerged, it bears a superficial resemblance to Hydrilla verticillata, an aquatic plant native to Sri Lanka.