The giant pitchers of Nepenthes rajah act as phytotelmataBromeliad tank formed by Neoregelia concentrica var. plutonisA water-filled tree hollowLyriothemis tricolor is a species of dragonfly that breeds in phytotelmata
Phytotelma (plural phytotelmata) is a small water-filled cavity in a terrestrial plant. The water accumulated within these plants may serve as the habitat for associated fauna and flora.
A rich literature in German summarised by Thienemann (1954)[1] developed many aspects of phytotelm biology. Reviews of the subject by Kitching (1971) and Maguire (1971)[2][3] introduced the concept of phytotelmata to English-speaking readers. A multi-authored book edited by Frank and Lounibos (1983)[4] dealt in 11 chapters with classification of phytotelmata, and with phytotelmata provided by bamboo internodes, banana leaf axils, bromeliad leaf axils, Nepenthes pitchers, Sarracenia pitchers, tree holes, and Heliconia flower bracts and leaf rolls.[5][6]
A classification of phytotelmata by Kitching (2000)[7] recognizes five principal types: bromeliad tanks, certain carnivorous plants such as pitcher plants, water-filled tree hollows, bamboo internodes, and axil water (collected at the base of leaves, petals or bracts); it concentrated on food webs. A review by Greeney (2001)[8] identified seven forms: tree holes, leaf axils, flowers, modified leaves, fallen vegetative parts (e.g. leaves or bracts), fallen fruit husks, and stem rots.
^Thienemann, A. (1954). Chironomus: Leben, Verbreitung und wirtschaftliche Bedeutung der Chironomiden. Binnengewässer20: 1-834.
^Maguire, B. (1971) Phytotelmata: Biota and community structure. Annual review of Ecology and Systematics.2: 439-464.
^Kitching, R. L. (1971) An ecological study of water-filled treeholes and their position in the woodland ecosystem. Journal of Animal Ecology40: 281-302.
^Frank, J.H. and Lounibos, L.P. (1983) Phytotelmata: Terrestrial plants as hosts for aquatic insect communities, Plexus Press. ISBN 0-937548-05-7
^Jalinsky, J., T.A. Radocy, R. Wertenberger, & C.S. Chaboo. 2014. Insect diversity in phytotelmata habitats of two host plants, Heliconia stricta Huber (Heliconiaceae) and Calathea lutea Schult (Marantaceae) in the south-east Amazon of Peru. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 87(3): 299–311.
^Hayford, Barbara, Timo Förster, Vivek Patel, & Caroline S. Chaboo. 2021. Aquatic Diptera associated with Neotropical Zingiberales phytotelmata (Diptera). Journal of Natural History 54:43-44, 2815-2838, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2020.1871522.
^Kitching, R.L. (2000). Food webs and container habitats: The natural history and ecology of phytotelmata. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-77316-4
^Greeney, H.F. (2001). The insects of plant-held waters: a brief review and bibliography. Journal of Tropical Ecology17(2): 241–260. doi:10.1017/S026646740100116X
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