Limosella inflata

Limosella inflata, commonly the inflated mudwort, is a small, perennial that bears small, simple leaves. 

The small white flowers are usually solitary from leaf axils. The tubular corolla ends in five lobes. The superior ovary has two locules, the style cylindrical. The fruit is an ovoid capsule.

The species distribution is in the Western Cape, the Eastern Cape, the Free State and KwaZulu-Natal, as well as in Africa and parts of Europe. The photo was taken in KwaZulu-Natal near the Lesotho border.

The plants grow in shallow fresh water. The generic name, Limosella, is derived from the Latin word, limosus meaning muddy, referring to the usual shallow water habitat. The habitat population is deemed of least concern early in the twenty first century.

The limosellas or mudworts occur widely on several continents, including Africa, Asia and Australia. They are usually small-flowered aquatic plants (Leistner, (Ed.), 2000; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).