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White Water Lily (Nymphaea odorata)

White Water Lily | Stillwater, MN| View Enlarged Image

A close cousin of the Yellow Water Lily, the White Water Lily can be found in quiet lakes or ponds from Summer to late Autumn. Like its cousin theYellow Water Lily, it floats directly on the surface of the lake by trapping air in small pockets in its stem and leaf. Its blooms are extraordinarilly beautiful, and remain open only on sunny days. Like its cousin, there's a lot of wildlife activity centered around the White Water Lily.

• Muskrats, Deer, and Beaver eat their roots.
• Insects eat their flat, pie-shaped lily pads and use them for breeding platforms,.
• The insects providing food for Swamp Sparrows, Red-winged Blackbirds, and other lakeshore insectovores.
• Fish rely on lily pads for cover.
• Green Heron will use the lily pads as stepping-stones as they hunt for aquatic insect larva and small fish.

White Water Lilies are great native plants for cultivated ponds. Cultivate them from seed or seedling; do not attempt to transplant them from the wild.

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