Cryptocoryne (
water trumpet) is a
genusIn biology, a genus is a taxonomic unit used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The term comes from Latin genus "descent, family, type, gender" , cognate with – genos, "race, stock, kin" ..In addition, genus is a taxonomic rank in the hierarchy In biology, a genus (plural:...
of about 50-60 species of
aquaticAquatic plants — also called hydrophytic plants or hydrophytes — are plants that have adapted to living in or on aquatic environments. Because living on or under water surface requires numerous special adaptations, aquatic plants can only grow in water or permanently saturated soil...
monocotMonocotyledons or monocots are one of two major groups of flowering plants that are traditionally recognized, the other being dicotyledons or dicots. Monocot seedlings typically have one cotyledon , in contrast to the two cotyledons typical of dicots. Monocots have been recognized at various...
plantPlants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. They include familiar organisms such as trees, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The scientific study of plants, known as botany, has identified about 350,000 extant species of plants, defined as seed plants,...
s from the family
AraceaeAraceae is a family of monocotyledonous flowering plants in which flowers are borne on a type of inflorescence called a spadix. The spadix is usually accompanied by, and sometimes partially enclosed in, a spathe or leaf-like hood. The group also goes by the name of Arum family and species in this...
(arums). The genus is naturally distributed in
tropicalThe tropics,the tropics are very hot. hi everyone! peace out!seated in the equatorial regions of the world, are limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately 23°26' N latitude and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at 23°26' S latitude...
regions of
AsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population.Asia is traditionally defined as part of the...
and
New GuineaNew Guinea, located north of Australia, is the world's second largest island. It became separated from the Australian mainland when the area now known as the Torres Strait flooded after the last glacial period. The name Papua has long been associated with the island...
.
The typical
habitatA habitat is an ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular animal and plant species...
s of
Cryptocoryne are mostly streams and rivers with not too rapidly flowing water, in the lowland forest. They also live in seasonally inundated forest pools or on river banks submerged only at high water.
Cryptocoryne (
water trumpet) is a
genusIn biology, a genus is a taxonomic unit used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The term comes from Latin genus "descent, family, type, gender" , cognate with – genos, "race, stock, kin" ..In addition, genus is a taxonomic rank in the hierarchy In biology, a genus (plural:...
of about 50-60 species of
aquaticAquatic plants — also called hydrophytic plants or hydrophytes — are plants that have adapted to living in or on aquatic environments. Because living on or under water surface requires numerous special adaptations, aquatic plants can only grow in water or permanently saturated soil...
monocotMonocotyledons or monocots are one of two major groups of flowering plants that are traditionally recognized, the other being dicotyledons or dicots. Monocot seedlings typically have one cotyledon , in contrast to the two cotyledons typical of dicots. Monocots have been recognized at various...
plantPlants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. They include familiar organisms such as trees, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The scientific study of plants, known as botany, has identified about 350,000 extant species of plants, defined as seed plants,...
s from the family
AraceaeAraceae is a family of monocotyledonous flowering plants in which flowers are borne on a type of inflorescence called a spadix. The spadix is usually accompanied by, and sometimes partially enclosed in, a spathe or leaf-like hood. The group also goes by the name of Arum family and species in this...
(arums). The genus is naturally distributed in
tropicalThe tropics,the tropics are very hot. hi everyone! peace out!seated in the equatorial regions of the world, are limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately 23°26' N latitude and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at 23°26' S latitude...
regions of
AsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population.Asia is traditionally defined as part of the...
and
New GuineaNew Guinea, located north of Australia, is the world's second largest island. It became separated from the Australian mainland when the area now known as the Torres Strait flooded after the last glacial period. The name Papua has long been associated with the island...
.
The typical
habitatA habitat is an ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular animal and plant species...
s of
Cryptocoryne are mostly streams and rivers with not too rapidly flowing water, in the lowland forest. They also live in seasonally inundated forest pools or on river banks submerged only at high water. Although the proper scientific name of the genus is
Cryptocoryne, they are commonly referred to as
crypts. The English name "water trumpet" refers to their
inflorescenceAn inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
, a
spadixIn botany, a spadix is a type of spike: an inflorescence with small flowers crowded on a thickened, fleshy axis. The term is applied to certain monocotyledons, especially members of the Family Araceae called arums or aroids...
enclosed by a
spatheIn botany, a spadix is a type of spike: an inflorescence with small flowers crowded on a thickened, fleshy axis. The term is applied to certain monocotyledons, especially members of the Family Araceae called arums or aroids...
(typical for the whole family), which resembles a trumpet.
The first
Cryptocoryne species was described in 1779 as
Arum spirale by
RetziusAnders Jahan Retzius was a Swedish chemist, botanist and entomologist.-Biography:Born in Kristianstad, he matriculated at Lund University in 1758, where he graduated as a filosofie magister in 1766. He also trained as an apothecary apprentice. He reveived the position of docent of chemistry at...
. The genus was described by
Friedrich Ernst Ludwig von FischerFriedrich Ernst Ludwig Fischer was a Russian botanist, born in Germany. He was director of the St Petersburg botanical garden from 1823 to 1850.In 1815, he was elected a corresponding member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences...
in 1828. However, the
scientific classificationBiological classification or scientific classification in biology, is a method by which biologists group and categorize organisms by biological type, such as genus or species. Biological classification is a form of scientific taxonomy, but should be distinguished from folk taxonomy, which lacks...
of
Cryptocoryne species is very complicated and there are different opinions about it.
LagenandraLagenandra is a genus of flowering plants in the Araceae family. It consists of 16 species of plants that are endemic to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and India. The genus is similar to Cryptocoryne, but can be distinguished from it by its involute vernation...
is another genus closely related to the genus
Cryptocoryne. The two can be easily told apart since the leaves of
Cryptocorynes exhibit convolute vernation whereas
LagenandraLagenandra is a genus of flowering plants in the Araceae family. It consists of 16 species of plants that are endemic to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and India. The genus is similar to Cryptocoryne, but can be distinguished from it by its involute vernation...
s exhibit involute vernation.
The name
Cryptocoryne is derived from the Latin
crypto, meaning hidden, and the Greek
koryne, meaning club. The common name (Watertrumpet) refers to the shape of its inflorescence, which is typical of the Arum family.
Selected species
- Cryptocoryne affinis
-Description:Long lanceolate leaves 6-12 inches long with an attractive bluish-green upper surface, a light green midrib and side nerves. The underside of the leaves is a deep reddish purple. The leaf stems are short in proportion to the leaf blade....
- Cryptocoryne aponogetifolia
-Description:The largest of the Cryptocorynes, with long strap-like leaves up to 18 inches or more long and 2 inches wide with a broad mid-rib. The stalks are normally about half the length of the leaves...
- Cryptocoryne auriculata
-Distribution:Borneo and Philippines ?In nature, C. auriculata grows between stones, which indicates that the water is running fast in the rainy season. -Description:...
- Cryptocoryne beckettii
-Distribution:Sri Lanka, found in freshwater springs and rivers.-Distribution:Sri Lanka, found in freshwater springs and rivers.-Distribution:Sri Lanka, found in freshwater springs and rivers.(It is not clear which plants sold in the aquarium trade under this name are the true species.Probably due...
- Cryptocoryne bogneri
- Cryptocoryne bullosa
- Cryptocoryne ciliata
- Cryptocoryne cognata
- Cryptocoryne cordata
- Cryptocoryne crispatula
- Cryptocoryne griffithii
- Cryptocoryne lingua
- Cryptocoryne longicauda
- Cryptocoryne minima
- Cryptocoryne parva
- Cryptocoryne pontederiifolia
- Cryptocoryne purpurea
- Cryptocoryne retrospiralis
- Cryptocoryne spiralis
- Cryptocoryne thwaitesii
- Cryptocoryne undulata
-Taxonomy:In the literature of the 60's this plant was considered a form of C. willisii but see the cryptocoryne page for a discussion of the name change and the 'diploid and 'triploid' forms.-Description:...
- Cryptocoryne usteriana
- Cryptocoryne walkeri
- Cryptocoryne wendtii
Cryptocoryne wendtii is a species of herb which is a popular aquarium plant which is native to Sri Lanka. It was described by Dutch botanist Hendrik de Wit in honour of aquarium hobbyist and writer Albert Wendt.-Distribution:...
- Cryptocoryne x willisii
Cultivation and uses
Some water trumpets are popular commercially cultivated
aquariumAn aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...
plants. Submersed plants
reproduce vegetativelyVegetative reproduction is a type of asexual reproduction for plants, and is also called vegetative propagation, vegetative multiplication, or vegetative cloning. It is a process by which new plant "individuals" arise or are obtained without production of seeds or spores...
, emersed plants may
flowerA flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds...
and reproduce
sexuallySexual reproduction is characterized by processes that pass a combination of genetic material to offspring, resulting in diversity. The main two processes are: meiosis, involving the halving of the number of chromosomes; and fertilization, involving the fusion of two gametes and the restoration...
. Many species are cultivated only by dedicated experts and are very hard to grow, or are not present in a culture at all. Some species are
endangeredAn endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters. Also it could mean that due to deforestation there may be a lack of food and/or water...
because their natural habitats are disappearing. On the other hand, some water trumpets (eg.
Cryptocoryne beckettii) are very hardy aquarium plants, easy to grow to the point that they have become an
invasive species'Invasive species' is a phrase with several definitions. The first definition expresses the phrase in terms of non-indigenous species that adversely affect the habitats they invade economically, environmentally or ecologically...
after being introduced in
FloridaFlorida is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the north. It was the 27th state admitted to the United States...
in
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
.
Some of the Cryptocorynes are generally the easier ones to keep (in fact, some species, such as
Cryptocorynes wendtii are said to be among the most versatile of aquarium plants); they require low to moderate light (but can grow faster in more intense light), a temperature range of around 20 to 33 °C, and slightly acidic or neutral
pHpH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of a solution. It is defined as the cologarithm of the activity of dissolved hydrogen ions . Hydrogen ion activity coefficients cannot be measured experimentally, so they are based on theoretical calculations...
, though they can adapt to higher pH as well. In contrast to accepted aquarium wisdom, it thrives well in calcareous water. Many modern aquariums may be too well lit for crypts to thrive.
Plants of the genus
Cryptocoryne, which range from India to New Guinea are found in very diverse conditions. Some are true acid loving plants such as
C. grabowski, found in peat bogs in Borneo, while others such as
C. balansae and
C. pontiderifolia are found in streams with limestone beds - hard alkaline water. One species,
C. ciliata is even found in semi brackish water in some areas. It is one of the few aquarium plants that tolerates salt concentrations that would almost certainly kill other aquarium plants.
There has been an extensive revision of the genus by Jacobsen and many names aquarists are familiar with have been changed. Crypts also have an annoying (to taxonomists!) tendency to hybridize freely in nature and there are a handful of "species" found in nature that are hybrids. Together with the fact that some species show a large variability (
C. wendtii) and can only be properly identified by the flowering spathe, this makes it difficult to identify some species solely on leaf habit.
Cryptocoryne plants have been in cultivation in the aquarium hobby since the late 18th century, although it was not until the 1960 s that more than a handful of species were known and became more common in the hobby. New species still regularly crop up as interest in these plants widens and more collecting expeditions by private parties are carried out.
Crypts are of commercial importance in the pet trade and have escaped into the wild in America, Jamaica, and other places. Texas and Florida both have stands of well established populations and these are considered invasive weeds with no known methods of control.
Crypt melt
A phenomenon often encountered when planting new crypts in an aquarium is commonly called
Crypt melt, whereby the plant loses all its leaves. There seem to be two possible causes for this.
Rapid environmental changes is thought to trigger this, as these plants don't seem to adapt well to transplantion, and may need thirty days or so to become established and for the leaves to regrow. Experienced growers report that it is better to plant crypts in aquariums that have been established for at least three months.
In the wild, Crypts can grow fully submerged underwater, but in Oriental nurseries they are often grown emersed and crypt melt could then be triggered by the change from emerse to submerse conditions.
There is lately a trend for such nurseries to send crypts as just a rootstock (ie. without the leaves to reduce shipping costs and because the leaves will be lost anyway once planted in an aquarium.
Other reports, eg.
emphasise the need to change the aquarium water regularly to prevent the build up of nitrates which are thought to trigger this condition (often referred to as a
disease)