Ricciocarpos

Ricciocarpos natans (vernacular name: fringed heartwort) is the only species in the genus Ricciocarpos, a genus of liverworts in the family Ricciaceae. It was formerly listed in 1759 as a species of Riccia by Linnaeus, but then assigned to a new genus of its own in 1829 by August Carl Joseph Corda. Despite having many common features with the genus Riccia, its most obvious difference from that genus are the long sword-shaped purple scales that hang from the under surface of floating plants. The genus has occasionally appeared in the literature under the spelling Ricciocarpus, but the spelling with an o is the original and accepted spelling. The specific epithet "natans" comes from the Latin word for "swimming", because plants typically float freely in ponds or quiet waters. Plants of R. natans have two very different forms, depending on the conditions under which the plant grows. One form develops in plants that grow on land (terrestrial), and another form develops when plants grow flo......read more on Wikipedia.