''Aponogeton abyssinicus'' is an amphibious plant found in east and central Africa, from

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...

and

Zaire Zaire (, ), officially the Republic of Zaire (french: République du Zaïre, link=no, ), was a Congolese state from 1971 to 1997 in Central Africa that was previously and is now again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Zaire was, ...

. Root stock tuberous or oblong, up to 2.5 cm diameter. Submersed leaves initially strap-shaped, up to 12 cm long and 6 mm wide, continuing lanceolate to obovate, up to 8.5 cm long, 2.6 cm wide and up to 10 cm long petiolate. Blade thin and slightly transparent, with a narrowing or decurrent base and acute or obtuse apex. Adults floating, up to 50 cm long petiolate. Floating leaf blade linear to ovoid, rarely cordate, up to 16 cm long and 5 cm wide, usually considerably smaller. Emersed leaves shaped like the floating leaves, slightly leathery and shorter petiolate. Peduncle up to 45 cm long, angled, dark red to green coloration, slightly pubescent underwater, almost glabrous above water, not swollen under the inflorescence. Spathe 1.0-1.6 cm long, caducous. Inflorescence featuring two 1.5-5-cm long spikes with omni-lateral flowers; 2 tepals, violet or white coloration; 6 stamens (none in apomictic plants); 3 carpels (up to 7 in apomictic plants). Fruit up to 7 x 2.75 mm large, with (4-) 7-10 seeds, sized 1-2 x 0.75 mm, double testa.

Etymology

The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

, , is derived from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

and means "Abyssinian" or "Ethiopian", referring to the plant's occurrence there.

Ecology

''Aponogeton abyssinicus'' populates shallow, usually temporary waters up to an altitude of . White-flowering plants (usually violet-flowering) were collected by the author in the

Selous Game Reserve The Selous Game Reserve, now renamed Nyerere National Park, is a protected area in southern Tanzania. It covers a total area of and has additional buffer zones. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982 due to its wildlife diversity ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

, where very few specimens were located only on the edges of a permanent water in shallow depth, occasionally also completely emersed in a moist substrate.

Cultivation

''Aponogeton abyssinicus'' is a rarely imported plant, the maintenance of which is entirely possible in an aquarium. For cultivation, preferably soft water as well as nutrient-rich and loose substrate is recommended. The best water temperature is . In the aquarium, the white-flowering form of ''A. abyssinicus'' forms a 15 cm wide and 10 cm tall rosette consisting of light green leaves, so that it may be considered for the foreground. The floating leaves, which only rarely form in aquariums, should be removed so that the later leaves will again remain short petiolate. An emersed or semi-aquatic keeping is possible under conditions of high humidity. Best cultivation results are achieved in shallow water. Propagation can occur only sexually through the very tiny seeds. Though they mostly germinate well, the rearing of the young plant is, in fact, extremely difficult and requires a lot of effort.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4780475 Abyssinicus Plants described in 1850 Flora of Eritrea Flora of Ethiopia Flora of Kenya Flora of Malawi Flora of Rwanda Flora of Somalia Flora of Tanzania Flora of Uganda Flora of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Freshwater plants