''Nymphaea ondinea'' is a flowering aquatic plant in the family Nymphaeaceae native to northwestern Australia. Originally classified in its own genus as ''Ondinea purpurea'', molecular studies have shown that it is morphologically aberrant species of ''Nymphaea'', to which it has been transferred.Löhne, Wiersema, Borsch (2009) The unusual ''Ondinea'', actually just another Australian water-lily of ''Nymphaea'' subg. ''Anecphya'' (Nymphaeaceae). Willdenowia 39: 55-58. It grows from a corm-like rhizome and is found in ephemeral pools and rivers that are dry for a significant portion of the year. The rhizome survives the dry season in drying mud. The species lacks an aril, appendages on the

carpel Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) '' pistils' ...

, a corolla, and certain other characteristics that sets it apart from other '' Nymphaea''. It is a small plant that grows, among other places, in shallow creeks of the Kimberley region of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. It grows from a rhizome that is about 2.5 cm long, and has leaves that are approximately 25 cm long, mostly submerged but with the occasional small floating leaf.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q18942529 ondinea Angiosperms of Western Australia