What is "brasenia"

Brasenia \Brasenia\ n. a magnoliid genus; a genus of dicotyledonous flowering plants regarded as the most primitive of extant angiosperms; alternatively, a member of the family Nymphaeaceae.

Syn: genus Brasenia.

Brasenia is a genus belonging to the family Cabombaceae, consisting of one extant species, Brasenia schreberi. It is widely distributed in North America, the West Indies, northern South America ( Venezuela, Guyana), eastern Asia ( China, Japan, Korea, Primorye), Australia, the Indian Subcontinent, and parts of Africa.

Brasenia is a perennial aquatic plant with floating, peltate leaves and rhizomatous stems. It is identified by its bright green leaves, small purple flowers that bloom from June through September, and a thick mucilage that covers all of the underwater organs, including the underside of the leaves, stems, and developing buds. This mucilage may be an anti-herbivore defence trait, perhaps to deter snail grazing. It grows in shallow water of lakes, rivers and beaver ponds, particularly those with somewhat acidic water.