American bur-reed

Sparganium americanum

Its spherical, spiked fruiting heads resemble miniature medieval maces and are designed to float, allowing seeds to disperse via water currents.

Scientific name

Sparganium americanum

Taxonomy

Plantae › Tracheophyta › Liliopsida › Poales › Typhaceae › Sparganium

IUCN Red List status

Least Concern

Population trend

stable

Biome

wetland

Habitat

Shallow freshwater marshes, swamps, pond edges, and slow-flowing streams.

Diet

Autotrophic (photosynthesis, absorbing nutrients from aquatic sediment)

Range

Eastern North America, Central United States, Southeastern Canada

Size

30 to 100 cm tall

Lifespan

Perennial (rhizomes can persist indefinitely)

Active

diurnal

Threats

Wetland drainage, water pollution, shoreline development, and invasive plant encroachment.

Safe to approach?

Harmless. This plant is safe to approach and touch. When observing, tread lightly to avoid damaging the fragile wetland soil and surrounding aquatic vegetation.

Sparganium americanum , American bur-reed , is a perennial plant found in the United States of America and Canada. Though this species resembles a grass, it is a type of bur-reed. This species is important for conservation purposes because it has the ability to remove nitrogen and phosphorus runoff from water, like many other wetland species. By doing this it protects waterways from excess nitrogen which can cause eutrophication. This increased nitrogen is especially a problem during the

Photo: Jason Hollinger, CC-BY, via iNaturalist

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