Drosera heterophylla Species Profile

Drosera heterophylla Species Profile

Drosera heterophylla is an erect tuberous species endemic to Western Australia. It is associated with winter-waterlogged niches such as swamps and the drainage channels of granite outcrops in the Swan Coastal Plain and adjacent Darling Scarp. The species has reniform shaped lamina along a straight main stem and produces particularly lustrous dew. The most distinctive feature of the species is its bloom, which is the only species in the genus to regularly produce many more petals than the usual five (typically 8 – 12)

The flower of Drosera heterophylla. Note the many petals.
Habitat of Drosera heterophylla in the Perth Hills. Plants usually grow aside small streams atop granite.
A field of Drosera heterophylla atop a granite outcrop that is covered with a thin layer of water.
Drosera heterophylla at the edge of a swamp channel near Mt Lesueur. The dew of the species is particularly refractive, earning its vernacular name the ‘swamp rainbow’. The plant forms particularly large berries.
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