What's eating my humped bladderwort?

Humped Bladderwort (Utricularia gibba) is an aquatic carnivorous plant with few natural pest enemies — its bladder traps actively catch small invertebrates. The main threats are algae competing for light and nutrients, plus pest snails grazing on delicate stems. Keep water clean and well-lit to stay ahead of both.

Dense mats smother stems and bladders, blocking light and reducing the plant's photosynthetic capacity Reduce nutrients and increase water circulation; manually remove algae; introduce algae-eating snails such as nerites only if the aquarium is large enough that bladder-traps pose minimal risk to tiny snails

Rasp and shred delicate stolons and bladder-bearing stems overnight Hand-pick snails and eggs; add assassin snails (Clea helena) as a biological control; quarantine any new aquatic plants before introduction

Surface cover blocks light reaching submerged stems, weakening the plant over time Net duckweed off the surface regularly; thin the canopy to maintain 6–8 hours of direct or bright artificial light reaching the water