A floating aquatic plant of South America, particularly various water lilies or similar vegetation found in marshes and wetlands.
From Spanish camalote, possibly from Guaraní or other South American indigenous languages. The term was used by Spanish colonizers to describe unfamiliar vegetation.
The camalote plants in Paraguay and Argentina are so aggressive they can form islands—floating mats of vegetation so thick you can walk on them, creating 'floating meadows' that fool early explorers.
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