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Nuphar advena
Yellow Pond-lily
Spatterdock
Cow Lily
Synonym(s): Nuphar lutea advena
Florida native
A common aquatic plant of ponds, marshes and sluggish streams in nearly all of Florida. The range extends throughout the eastern United States, west to Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Minnesota, plus Ontario in Canada.
The cordate-ovate leaves are 15-30 cm (6-12 in.) long either held above the water or laying on the surface. The lobes are widely divergent with a deep cleft or sinus. The yellow globular flowers are held above the water on stout pedicels that, like the leaf petioles, are glabrous and terete. There are three outer sepals that are initially green, three yellow inner sepals, many small somewhat hidden yellow petals, several rings of stamens and a compound pistil with a flattened apex made up of 8-24 spreading stigmatic rays. Blooming occurs for months from late spring to early fall, but individual flowers are short lived. The ovoid fruit is slightly constricted towards the apex.
There are two other subspecies of Nuphar advena, both occurring in the panhandle. N. advena orbiculata has rounder leaves, and is also found in Georgia and Alabama. N. advena ulvacea has leaves that are more than twice as long as wide and with a sinus less than a quarter of the length of the blade. Endemic to Florida, it is only found in Jackson, Santa Rosa and Escambia Counties. All three share the same common names.
Nuphar advena is a member of the Nymphaeaceae - Water-lily family.
Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants (Institute for Systemic Botany) profile for this species
Wildflowers of the Southeastern United States profile for this species
USDA Plant Profile for this species
Date record last modified: Jan 19, 2021
