Galanthus nivalis York State, Michigan, Utah, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina). Although often thought of as a British native wild flower, or to have been brought to the British Isles by the Romans, it is now thought that it was probably introduced much later, perhaps around the early sixteenth century. "Galanthus nivalis" grows to around 7–15 cm tall, flowering between January and April in the northern temperate zone (January–May in the wild). They are perennial, herbaceous plants which grow from bulbs. Each bulb generally produces two linear, or very narrowly lanceolate, greyish-green leaves and an erect, leafless scape
Chlamydomonas nivalis have been found on the surface of "C. nivalis" cysts. The unknown bacteria were not detected in control samples that did not contain "C. nivalis" which strongly suggests that it must be associated with the algae. Another bacterium, "Mesorhizobium loti", was found as contamination in a "C. nivalis" culture, but further testing suggested that this bacteria may be synthesizing vitamin B12 for the algae. In cryoconite holes "C. nivalis" can be found among bacteria, virus-like particles, ciliates, and Chlorophyte species. Ice worms have also been found to live preferentially under "C. nivalis" in glaciers, possibly using the algae as a