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Strophocactus wittii
Strophocactus wittii, synonym Selenicereus wittii, known as the Amazon moonflower, is a species of plant in the genus Strophocactus in the cactus family (Cactaceae), and is one of several species commonly called "moonflowers". It was first described in 1900 by Karl Moritz Schumann and is one of three species of cactus found in the central Amazon basin.
The flat, ribbonlike, root climbing stem grows epiphytically on the trunks of trees in seasonally flooded forests of the Amazon basin, which is regularly flooded for a few weeks each year. During this time, the seeds spread through the water, which is unique within the cactus family.
Strophocactus wittii is common in the rainforests of the central Amazon basin along blackwater rivers. There the species grows in abundance in the crown area of the temporarily flooded floodplain forests. The distribution area extends along the Rio Negro and Rio Japurá in Brazil over the Río Vaupés, Río Apaporis and Caquetá in Colombia to northeast Peru in the Loreto region to the city of Iquitos and probably includes the southern area of the Amazon basin in Venezuela. In addition to Strophocactus wittii, only the two cactus species Rhipsalis baccifera and Epiphyllum phyllanthus grow there.
Strophocactus brasiliensis · Strophocactus sicariguensis · Strophocactus
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Strophocactus wittii by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
