I became aware of an epiphytic carnivorous plant looking like an orchid about 10 years ago when I was just starting to grow CPs. My father, a long time orchid grower told me he once collected a plant he thought was an orchid, just to discover later that it was a carnivorous plant of the Utricularia genus. He described the plant as a beautiful miniature plant with orchid like flowers of white and violet colors, and told me it grew on tree trunks in the forests around the "Represa de el Peñol", an artificial lake located at around 1900 meters over sea level and about 1:30 hours away from my city Medellin.

As this lake is a known touristic destination we often visited to practice water skiing and windsurfing, I did not have to wait a long time before I had the opportunity to get one of this plants and try to grow it. I remember I grew it with my other CPs in pure sphagnum moss. At the beginning it grew well and bloomed two or three times, but then disappeared without apparent reasons. I tried it some more times during the following years, always with similar results.

Later, terrorists known as "guerrilla" became a problem at most parts of my country and it was not safe anymore to go to "El Peñol" and I just had to wait patiently until it was a safe time again.

Well, it was about time. Our current president, Alvaro Uribe, has been doing a very good job trying to protect roads and touristic places around my country and this year, I heard a lot of people was again safely travelling to "El Peñol" so I decided to go back and look for my long time wanted Utric.

The lake is surrounded by mountains and hills, which, at some points are covered by native cloud forests. There are lots of small streams of water dripping from the mountains to the lake and you can see a lot of variety in birds, insects and plants.

These are the forest covered hills around the lake. The habitat of U.jamesoniana

A closer view of the cloud forests around the lake.

When I got off the boat I had this remarkable feeling of tranquility I always feel when I am in cloud forests. It is difficult to describe but being there is a sensation you won´t feel in any other place. The smell, the sounds, the energy in the air, everything feels special.

Just when entering the forest by a water stream I heard the songs of the small poison dart frogs (Minyobates opisthomelas), there are lots of them inside the bromeliads growing near the forest floor, and they produce this cricket like mysterious sound that you can hear from a far distance, but at the same time, always sounds soft, even when you are near the frog.

Minyobates opisthomelas in its Bromeliad.

I knew I had to climb to the top of the hills, because U.jamesoniana only grows in places where it can get good humidity and a good amount of sunlight. This kind of places inside the forest are a lot easier to find at the top of the hills where trees get smaller, humidity lower and the forest is more open receiving more light from the sun, so I followed a path formed by a water stream.

On my walk to the top, I saw a lot of interesting plants, including different kinds of bromeliads and orchids like Acostaea, Masdevallia, Stellis, Pleurothallis, Maxillaria and Oncidium. This is a very rich forest, and at some places you can find three species of Masdevallia growing together. I reached the top and started walking by the top line searching for the right habitat. It did not take long; just 10 meters ahead of where I reached the top, I found a moss covered branch with small green leaves rising from the moss.

I looked to make sure It was not a fern or an orchid; yes, finally, after all this years I was looking at U.jamesoniana again. The branch had at least 5 or 6 plants, but no flowers and I was looking for a flowering plant because I needed to take pictures of the blooming plant in its habitat.

A plant of U.jamesoniana in its habitat

A closer view. Notice the white stolons,tubers and bladders.

I walked a little more and found another place just about 3 meters from the previous one. Here a lot of moss covered branches were fully covered with plants, and finally, one plant was blooming; what an excitement to find the white tinted with purple flower. It was 16:30 and I had to go but first I took some pictures and collected a small number of plants, including the blooming one because I wanted to pollinate it and try to get seed from it.

This was the only blooming plant at the moment, and only other two plants were starting to grow a flower stalk. The rainy season is just starting and I think this plants are just starting their active growth phase, producing some new leaves and blooming because they have to bloom and set seed before the next dry season starts in July.

Close view of the fabulous flower of U.jamesoniana

Different view of the same flower.

It is remarkable how this plant spreads by stolons. I observed the thin white stolons spreading along the branches, and producing a new plant at every point where the stolon found a moss covered spot. There were stolons as long as 50 cms with 5 to 10 plants sprouting from them and at some parts of the stolons you could also see the small exposed bladders. Also, the oldest plants, had a lot of the rice like tubers, forming a circle and sending running stolons just to extend their colony.

View of flower from top. Look at the bracts and bracteoles.

Another plant. Notice the tubers and the white stolon climbing up the branch.

This must be U.jamesoniana heaven. This habitat is a protected area and it is very likely It won't get disturbed in the long term, and I am sure that this species is very common and grows at many places along the hill tops. Now, comes the real challenge. Properly growing it and introducing it to the CP hobbie, making it one member of every utric growing CPer´s growlist.

See you at my next adventure!!

Some other pictures for you.

Side view of flower	Close-up view of tubers and bladders
Microscopic view of tuber, stolons and bladders	Microscopic view of bladder