This aquatic is widespread across eastern North America, especially in old oxbows and pools along slowly moving streams with water generally about 0.5-1.5 m deep, but sometimes partially drying out. It is generally absent from smaller, more ephemeral or remote ponds on uplands. It has tough rhizomes ca. 5-10 cm thick that create dominant patches (potentially supressing Nelumbo). Rhizomes and seeds have been consumed by humans for medicine or food, with preparation, but plants are generally bitter due to tannins and diverse unusual alkaloids, some containing sulphur (e.g.Cybulski & Wróbel 1989). The closely related northeastern species, N. variegata Dur. (sometimes treated as a var. or ssp. of advena or luteum), has been reported from Ky. but apparently in error (M). Its range overlaps slightly with advena, and there may be introgression in mid-Atlantic states (FNA 3; Padgett 2007). N. advena can have occasional reddish coloration of flower and fruit parts (especially in western populations), but variegata has distinctly dark red or purplish fruits and also differs in its flattened petioles (W).