# Rotala macrandra narrow morphing!!!



## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

I'm slowly but surely loosing m Rotala Macrandra narrow. It's so wierd. Here's a shot.


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## ashappard (Jun 3, 2006)

so all those stems that look like regular R.macrandra used to be narrow? that is interesting.

if they are anything like my stems of R.butterfly that went to R.macrandra 'green' -- they wont switch back. I culled my converted stems and planted them someplace else. I've topped them a few times now and they still look like R.macrandra 'green'


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

Did you just trim the morphed pieces back or remove the entire stem?


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## ashappard (Jun 3, 2006)

I just culled the entire stem. Some branches converted some did not. I snipped off the converted shoots, moved them to another tank and replanted the ones that looked proper in the original tank. I can say that once R.butterfly converts, it grows like wildfire. I have quite a stand of R.butterfly 'green'  It seems to grow twice as fast as the more attractive narrow, magenta colored stuff.


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## tranr (May 20, 2009)

What causes them to eventually convert from one form to the other? Is there anything that can be done to prevent this from happening to the stems? I'm just curious.


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## Minsc (May 7, 2006)

Tex Gal said:


> I'm slowly but surely loosing m Rotala Macrandra narrow. It's so wierd. Here's a shot.


Kudos for growing it at all in a tank that big. That is one heck of a difficult plant, the best luck I've had with it is in a small tank where I can easily pound it with light, CO2 and flow. Even then it stunts occasionally.


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## Minsc (May 7, 2006)

tranr said:


> What causes them to eventually convert from one form to the other? Is there anything that can be done to prevent this from happening to the stems? I'm just curious.


A lot of these plants: magenta, butterfly, mini 1 and 2 seem to be mutant strains of macrandra red and green that have been propagated. I've also read claims that they are hybrids, developed from seed I suppose.

When the stems are under stress they will often revert to the standard macrandra form, and it is quite easy to stress these plants! It is easy enough to cull the reverted stems and propagate the others, provided you can keep them alive.


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## Zapins (Jul 28, 2004)

tranr said:


> What causes them to eventually convert from one form to the other? Is there anything that can be done to prevent this from happening to the stems? I'm just curious.


My guess as to what causes this to happen is Transposable Genetic Elements. Essentially Transposable Genetic Elements (TGE) are DNA that codes for a protein that it uses to cut itself out of the rest of the host's DNA. The TGE then floats around the genome of the host attached to the protein that it made and then it uses the protein to randomly inserts itself into the host's DNA somewhere else. These TGE's don't seem to have a specific function other then cutting themselves out and inserting themselves into new locations. If TGE's insert into the coding region of a gene they usually interrupt that gene's function in some way. TGE's are present in virtually every living thing (even humans!). In plants they were first discovered in corn by Barbara McClintock when the kernal color was observed to randomly change colors from one generation to the next even though the genes that each offspring had for color were known.

So what I believe has happened in R. mac is that the broad leaf form is the normal form and somewhere along the line some hobbyist got lucky and the TGE inserted itself randomly into the leaf shape gene (or pathway that forms the leaf shape) disrupting the normal leaf shape and producing a thinner then normal leaf. As the plant cells divided and made exact copies of the previous cells (as is normal for growth) the TGE was duplicated in its current position. In this way all new leaves growing from a TGE narrow leaf will be narrow until the TGE cuts itself out at the apical meristem (terminal bud/growing tip). So when the TGE activates for whatever reason and cuts itself out of the leaf shape gene the gene's function is restored and all subsequent leaves are normal. This is probably why the narrow version converts to the normal broad leaf version far more often then the other way around (since there are thousands of genes for the TGE to randomly insert into and only a few influence leaf shape).

Therefore, you should cull any converted magenta since it is not likely to convert back.


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## ashappard (Jun 3, 2006)

I think they are more likely to convert when some kind of stress is applied. low nutrients / imbalance / some kind of unhappy situation. I think that was my case when I had some R.butterfly convert.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

I will cull the errant stems. They are so healthy I hate to toss them. Maybe I'll offer them to someone letting them know they are converted. The plant was under stress when I was gone a couple of weeks ago. It's fine now.


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## ashappard (Jun 3, 2006)

I don't see any need to toss them. if they are healthy stems keep em, unless you just don't like the look. Its not like they are contagious. I kept my R.butterfly that converted and now I have a nice stand of R.macrandra green. I just yanked them out of my R.butterfly because they didnt look so nice all tangled up together.


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## macclellan (Feb 28, 2007)

Some of my R.butterfly morphed too. I pitched it, as I was only interested in the finer-leaved flutterby.


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## Zapins (Jul 28, 2004)

Hopefully this makes it a bit easier to see.


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## GmoAndres (Oct 18, 2004)

Hi,
in my experience, this phenomenon is very normal in this variety of Rotala. 
The "hidden fenotipic form" is latent, dormant in the genom, and certain ambiental factors can stimulate the expression

Some pictures :
normal form:









normal with some wide stems









and another form for the same plant, with inflorescence









Regards,
Gmo


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## bsmith (Dec 13, 2006)

I was beginning to wonder why all the rotala started looking very similar in my tanks! My butterfly is now the maccandra. What should I call it??? You can see the 2 in the bottom left corner also.









I have also had my mini type 2 turn then revert to its the 2 form after adding more light, this is also when my butterfly turned but it has never reverted.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

I just find this so amazing! This is why I like plants so much! They are just too cool!


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## ashappard (Jun 3, 2006)

bsmith782 said:


> My butterfly is now the maccandra. What should I call it???


it has reverted to Rotala macrandra 'green' and it will not switch back. 90% sure


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