Habit: Pistia stratiotes grows as a floating rosette with large fibrous root systems, 3-10 spongy, succulent, gray/white pubescent leaves, that are 20 cm in length, obovate to suborbicular, with prominent parallel veins, a rounded apex, and an entire margin.
The incomplete, imperfect, actinomorphic flowers are in 5-10 flowered spathes. Flowers highly reduced with no calyx or corolla. Staminate flowers with 2 stamens and no carpel. Carpellate flowers have no stamens and a single carpel.
Most reproduction is vegetatively forming large mats.
Habitat: Pistia stratiotes grows in Fresh Water Wetlands.
Distribution: Pistia stratiotes is NOT native to the Lucayan Archipelago. It is a Non-Native Invasive species. It is pantropical and subtropical and has spread globally for a long time obscuring its natural range.
Medicinal/Cultural/Economic usage: Pistia stratiotes has not been used medicinally in the Bahamas.