Lasiocaules brings together bladderworts whose relationships were obscured by the broader use of Pleiochasia in older classifications. It is also a good example of a group whose species list changed soon after a major review. Understanding both dates prevents an encyclopaedia from treating an older count as permanent.
A section established in 2017
The name is Utricularia section Lasiocaules R.W.Jobson & Baleeiro, within subgenus Polypompholyx. Its type species is U. lasiocaulis. The 2017 study recognised this section from a major lineage formerly included in Pleiochasia. Many members bear hairs or glands on their flowering stalks, but this is not a universal, stand-alone identification rule. Original sectional treatment.
The formal description allows annual and perennial plants and terrestrial, affixed subaquatic and rock-dwelling habits. Those alternatives matter: the name describes a botanical relationship, not one uniform cultivation category. Sectional description.
The roster and its update
The supplementary table to Reut and Płachno's review lists the following 24 species. The paper appeared online in 2022 and in the 2023 volume of The Botanical Review. Supplementary Table 1.
- Utricularia albertiana
- Utricularia antennifera
- Utricularia arnhemica
- Utricularia bidentata
- Utricularia capilliflora
- Utricularia cheiranthos
- Utricularia dunlopii
- Utricularia dunstaniae
- Utricularia gaagudju
- Utricularia georgei
- Utricularia holtzei
- Utricularia kamienskii
- Utricularia kenneallyi
- Utricularia kimberleyensis
- Utricularia lasiocaulis
- Utricularia leptorhyncha
- Utricularia lowriei
- Utricularia magna
- Utricularia papilliscapa
- Utricularia quinquedentata
- Utricularia rhododactylos
- Utricularia tridactyla
- Utricularia uniflora
- Utricularia wannanii
A separate revision published on 16 December 2022 described three further species from the U. lasiocaulis complex:
- Utricularia brennanii R.W.Jobson & Baleeiro — Northern Territory and Queensland.
- Utricularia cowiei R.W.Jobson & Baleeiro — the Kimberley region of Western Australia.
- Utricularia disjuncta R.W.Jobson & Baleeiro — Darwin and Gulf regions of the Northern Territory.
These additions bring the combined roster used here to 27 species. This is an explicitly dated synthesis of the reviewed treatments. Jobson and Baleeiro's 2022 revision.
Why a revision changes more than the count
The same study narrowed the concepts of U. leptorhyncha and U. lasiocaulis. It also retained pink-flowered material within the otherwise usually white-flowered U. kamienskii. These outcomes show why neither a striking colour difference nor an old broad species label settles identity on its own. Taxonomic conclusions of the revision.
For collection records, this creates a practical task. An older accession labelled U. lasiocaulis should keep that original label in its history while its identification is checked against the revised description. Do not automatically rename every old accession to one of the new species. The plant and its provenance must support the determination.
What to record for identification
Photograph the entire inflorescence as well as individual flowers from the front and side. Include the stalk base and the small structures around each flower, with a scale where possible. Record the date, original source and any reliable locality information. A close photograph of colour alone leaves much of the evidence unavailable.
Use the relevant species treatment or botanical key to decide which characters need closer examination. A visible hair can be informative without being sufficient; a smooth-looking stalk in a distant image may simply need magnification.
Growing the actual accession
Before choosing a seasonal treatment, establish the species, life cycle and habitat evidence. Keep observations of seedlings, mature plants, flowering, seed production and any persistent vegetative growth. These records help distinguish the end of an annual life cycle from a reversible seasonal change or a cultivation problem.
A successful method for one member belongs in that species account, with its conditions and provenance. It should not silently become a prescription for all 27 names. This guide supplies the taxonomic map; the individual profiles supply the biological detail.
Reviewed 22 September 2026. The initial roster is adapted from Reut and Płachno's supplementary table under CC BY 4.0; the three additions follow their original 2022 taxonomic publication.
