The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07.
frog’s-bit
common name for members of the Hydrocharitaceae, a family of aquatic herbs found in warm fresh- and saltwaters throughout the world. Most species grow partially or completely submerged, rarely floating. The family includes an eelgrass (genus Vallisneria), called also water celery and tape grass; the frog’s-bit (Hydrocharis morsus-ramae); and the waterweeds (genus Elodea), often used in aquariums and in botanical experiments. Frog’s-bit is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Liliopsida, order Hydrocharitales.
