Today was one of cloud cat-and-mouse but I was finally able to patrol the lower and middle South Cove, zone 11 + 11, on the east side from the Snow Brook inlet, through Smith Cove and to the top of Greely Cove except for the outer most grids to the west (#306 up to 263) where the wind became just too difficult to work with. I did see all the plants as depicted on our zone map and, in addition, a good number of Floating bladderworts right in front of the Smith’s dock (grid 283.) I recognized those plants because of the yellow flower hovering above the water’s surface at the base of its “wheel” of 5 short branches. (Notice the small flowers popping up from the surface of the water.)
But then I realized, as I zigzagged over that grid, I was seeing many more plants with the same very fine lattice of tiny bladders as those plants that had the flowers… So, could it be that what I saw just didn’t have their flowers (yet?)
I will have to return and check that out.
This photo below offers an understanding of how fine the lattice of bladders truly are.
NEWS TO DIGEST:
Please see Don’s most recent post describing the difference between Floating and Inflated bladderworts. They look very similar except that the Inflated bladderwort, aka Swollen bladderwort, is larger, and the shape of its radiating spokes markedly narrow towards the stem.
In addition, Don stated:
“Amy Smagula reports that Inflated Bladderwort is not being managed by the state but they recognize it as a non-native and are monitoring its presence in NH lakes. It’s worth keeping an eye out for plants that look like this in Conway Lake, especially if they begin to occur in large numbers. Inflated Bladderwort can be a problem by becoming dominant in ponds/lakes and displacing other native aquatic plants.”
Below is a photo of a dried Inflated bladderwort (from the site “Go Botany”) so that you can readily see that difference.
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