Passiflora foetida
Ibicella lutea
México
Q: Carnivorous plants of México--a Pinguicula stronghold!
A: With a diversity of habitats, México contributes well to our global carnivorous plant biodiversity. It is home to species of Drosera, Genlisea, Utricularia, Pinguicula, and Catopsis. México is also home to Passiflora foetida and Capsella bursa-pastoris, two plants that may or may not be carnivorous. Furthermore, while I have not yet found citable references to support me, I suspect that the non-native Ibicella lutea also occurs in México.
P. reticulata
P. moranensis
P. gypsicola
P. esseriana
Pinguicula
The strength of México's carnivorous plant biodiversity is surely in the genus
Pinguicula. The list of Mexican species includes about
fifty species, nearly all of which are endemic--many carnivorous plant aficionados visit the
country just to see plants in this
genus! The states of Oaxaca, Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Hidalgo, and
Nuevo León have at least five species each. Oaxaca is the clear winner, with at least fourteen species, i.e., nearly
twice as many species as the other most species-rich states.
Drosera
México is surprisingly weak on representation in this genus. It is possible that more species will be detected in
the country in the future. For example, I would not be surprised if Drosera intermedia occurs
in México, as its range includes the USA and Cuba. The speciesDrosera are known to occur in
México are:
D. capillaris
D. brevifolia
- Drosera brevifolia: Chiapas.
- Drosera capillaris: (in Veracruz, Chiapas, and Tabasco). However, Drosera capillaris is a variable species, and future studies may reveal that what we call D. capillaris is actually a set of as-yet unrecognized but similar species.
Genlisea
G. filiformis has been collected twice from the same location in Chiapas.
Utricularia
Utricularia has many species in the country, and more are sure to be documented in the future.
The species U. resupinata and U. olivacea occur in countries
adjacent to México, and are candidates for being detected there in the future. Currently
we know of the following species:
U. gibba
U. amethystina
U. purpurea
U. macrorhiza
U. livida
- U. amethystina: Guerrero, México.
- U. foliosa: Campeche, México, Oaxaca, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Yucatán.
- U. gibba: Campeche, Chiapas, Coahuila, Durango, Jalisco, México, Michoacán, Puebla, San Luis Potosí, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Yucatán.
- U. hintonii (endemic): México--known only from a few collections!
- U. hispida: Veracruz. Taylor also notes it occurs in Tehuantepec, which is the narrow isthmus in southern Mexico, but this includes parts of a few states (including Oaxaca, Chiapas, and Tabasco), so some of these states may have U. hispida in them.
- U. hydrocarpa: Tabasco--a Central and South American species collected only once in México.
- U. juncea: Veracruz.
- U. livida: Chiapas, Chihuahau, Durango, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Michoacán, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Puebla, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora, Veracruz, Zacatecas.
- U. macrorhiza: Baja California, Coahuila, México.
- U. petersoniae (endemic): Guerrero--known from only three closely spaced locations.
- U. perversa: Chihuahua, Guanajuato.
- U. purpurea: Veracruz.
- U. pusila: Chiapas, Guerrero, Jalisco, México, Nayarit, Veracruz.
- U. subulata: Chiapas, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Nayarit, Tabasco.
Are there yet other species that have not been discovered, or is our knowledge of the ranges of the species above incomplete? Claro que sí!
Page citations: Rivadavis, F. 2008 (pers. comm.); García, M.O. & Martínez S., E. 2002; Rice, B.A. 2006a; Taylor, P. 1989; USDA, GRIN, accessed 8/2008; personal observation.
