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Potamogeton epihydrus

Raf.

Nuttall's Pondweed

G5Secure Found in 4 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →

G5SecureGlobal Rank

Least concernIUCN

UnknownThreat Impact

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.144293

Element CodePMPOT03080

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryVascular Plant

IUCNLeast concern

Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

KingdomPlantae

PhylumAnthophyta

ClassMonocotyledoneae

OrderNajadales

FamilyPotamogetonaceae

GenusPotamogeton

Other Common Names

Potamot émergé (FR) ribbonleaf pondweed (EN) Ribbonleaf Pondweed (EN)

Concept Reference

Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.

Conservation Status

Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2

Review Date2024-09-27

Change Date1984-06-25

Edition Date2024-09-27

Edition AuthorsN. Ventrella (2024)

Threat ImpactUnknown

Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)

Number of Occurrences> 300

Rank Reasons

Potamogeton epihydrus is a perennial aquatic forb occurring in a wide variety of tidal and non-tidal aquatic habitats of Europe and North America. There are over 1,000 occurrences of this taxon, which are potentially threatened by land-use conversion, habitat fragmentation, water diversion and alteration of hydrology, erosion, pollution, recreational activities, invasive species, climate change, and other threats in some places. Little is known about threats or trends, but with a large range extent, high number of occurrences, abundant habitat, broad habitat preferences, and no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities, Potamogeton epihydrus is considered secure.

Range Extent Comments

Potamogeton epihydrus is a widespread species in North America, occurring from Alaska through southern Canada and much of the United States, excluding Arizona east through Arkansas and north through Nebraska (FNA 2000). It also occurs in Europe as a native species (POWO 2024). Range extent was estimated to be over 25 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1993 and 2024 (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, SEINet 2024).

Occurrences Comments

By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium records and photo-based observations documented between 1993 and 2024, there are estimated to be over 1,000 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, SEINet 2024).

Threat Impact Comments

Potamogeton epihydrus is somewhat threatened by land-use conversion and habitat fragmentation (Southern Appalachian Species Viability Project 2002). Additional threats are not widely documented, but likely include water diversion, alteration of hydrology, erosion, pollution and eutrophication, recreational activities, invasive species, climate change, and other threats in some places, though there is insufficient data, including anecdotal accounts, to understand scope and severity of threats for this species.

Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Potamogeton epihydrus occurs in a wide variety of tidal and non-tidal aquatic habitats, including "bogs, brooks (floodplain), canals (slow flowing), channels (boat), depressions, ditches (irrigation), floodplains, gravel pits (roadside), lakes (seepage), marshes, meadows, ponds (beaver, bog, muskeg, oxbow), pools (brook, spill), reservoirs, rivers, sloughs (peaty), and streams" (Les 2020). It is commonly found in full sunlight and adapted to diverse habitats, from near sea level to high elevations, and at water depths of 0.05 to 2.9 m. The plant is most common in waters with lower alkalinity and conductivity.

Reproduction

Flowering occurs from June to October, with aerial flowers supported by floating leaves (Les 2020). Seeds are dispersed by water currents and waterfowl.

Terrestrial Habitats

Grassland/herbaceous

Palustrine Habitats

HERBACEOUS WETLANDFORESTED WETLANDBog/fen

Other Nations (2)

CanadaN5

Province	Rank	Native
New Brunswick	S5	Yes
Quebec	S5	Yes
Island of Newfoundland	S4	Yes
Saskatchewan	S2	Yes
Labrador	S3	Yes
Prince Edward Island	S4	Yes
Nova Scotia	S5	Yes
Manitoba	S3	Yes
British Columbia	S5	Yes
Ontario	S5	Yes
Alberta	SU	Yes

United StatesN5

Province	Rank	Native
New Jersey	S5	Yes
Mississippi	S1	Yes
Maine	SNR	Yes
West Virginia	S4	Yes
North Carolina	S3	Yes
Virginia	S4	Yes
Idaho	SNR	Yes
Rhode Island	SNR	Yes
Ohio	SNR	Yes
New York	S5	Yes
Wyoming	S2	Yes
Connecticut	SNR	Yes
California	S2	Yes
Utah	S1	Yes
Iowa	SU	Yes
Alaska	SNR	Yes
Nevada	S1	Yes
Missouri	SH	Yes
Georgia	SNR	Yes
Oregon	SNR	Yes
Wisconsin	SNR	Yes
Montana	SNR	Yes
Vermont	S5	Yes
Tennessee	S1	Yes
Alabama	SNR	Yes
Delaware	S4	Yes
District of Columbia	SNR	Yes
Michigan	SNR	Yes
Kentucky	S1	Yes
South Carolina	S2	Yes
Louisiana	SH	Yes
Pennsylvania	S5	Yes
Washington	SNR	Yes
Maryland	SNR	Yes
Minnesota	SNR	Yes
Illinois	S1	Yes
Indiana	S1	Yes
Massachusetts	SNR	Yes
Colorado	S3	Yes
Florida	SNR	Yes
New Hampshire	SNR	Yes
South Dakota	SNR	Yes

Threat Assessments

Threat	Scope	Severity	Timing
Unknown/undetermined	—	—	—

Plant Characteristics

DurationPERENNIAL

Economic Value (Genus)No

Roadless Areas (4)

Maine (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Caribou - Speckled Ext	White Mountain National Forest	5,988

New Hampshire (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Kinsman Mountain	White Mountain National Forest	8,999

North Carolina (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Overflow Creek	Nantahala National Forest	3,379

West Virginia (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Falls Of Hills Creek	Monongahela National Forest	6,925

References (8)

Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2000. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 22. Magnoliophyta: Alismatidae, Arecidae, Commelinidae (in part), and Zingiberidae. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xxiii + 352 pp.
Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2024. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2024).
iNaturalist. 2024. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2024).
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Les, D. 2020. Aquatic Monocotyledons of North America: Ecology, Life History, and Systematics. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL. 568 pp.
Plants of the World Online (POWO). 2024. Plants of the World Online. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Online. Available: https://powo.science.kew.org/ (accessed 2024).
Southern Appalachian Species Viability Project. 2002. A partnership between the U.S. Forest Service-Region 8, Natural Heritage Programs in the Southeast, NatureServe, and independent scientists to develop and review data on 1300+ regionally and locally rare species in the Southern Appalachian and Alabama region. Database (Access 97) provided to the U.S. Forest Service by NatureServe, Durham, North Carolina.
Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).

Potamogeton epihydrus

Habitat

Reproduction

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