Myriophyllum verticillatum | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Saxifragales |
Family: | Haloragaceae |
Genus: | Myriophyllum |
Species: | M. verticillatum |
Binomial name | |
Myriophyllum verticillatum | |
Myriophyllum verticillatum, the whorl-leaf watermilfoil [1] or whorled water-milfoil, [2] is a native to much of North America, North Africa, and Eurasia. It closely resembles another native milfoil, called northern water milfoil (M. sibiricum) [3] Whorled water milfoil is also easily confused with four types of invasive milfoils: Eurasian water milfoil (M. spicatum), Variable water-milfoil (M. heterophyllum), Parrot feather (M. aquaticum), and hybrid water milfoil (M. heterophyllum X M. laxum).
In many areas it is an invasive aquatic plant.
With the increase in water sports, the spread of many water milfoils (Haloragaceae) has increased over the years. The spread of a milfoil is not only within one area, sometimes it spreads from one area to another many miles away.
To the untrained eye, whorled water milfoil can look similar to other species.
The best way to identify whorled water milfoil (M. verticillatum) is by looking at its two different types of leaves. The first type is the submerged leaf, which looks feathery and contains about 5 to 14 leaflet pairs per leaf. The whorls along the stem contain about 4 to 5 leaves, which are spaced about 1 cm apart. The other type is known as the emergent leaves. These leaves occur on the emergent spike and are pinnately lobed. From June till September whorled water milfoil produces flowers and fruits above or at the water's surface on erect spikes along the emergent leaves. The emergent leaves are typically two or more times longer than the flowers and fruits. [4]
Another way to distinguish whorled water milfoil is to look for turions, winter buds that appear toward the end of its growing season. This milfoil is one of a few that produce turions. This characteristic can also rule out other types of water milfoil that lack turions such as Eurasian water milfoil, parrot feather, hybrid water milfoil, and low water milfoil. The turions of this milfoil look like long yellowish-green club-shaped buds with small stiff leaves attached to the submerged stem. In the spring after dormancy the small, thick, dark green turions expand and grow from the stem. As the plant develops roots and continues to grow, the larger green summer leaves are produced at the tip of the plant. Turion leaves can be seen at the base of the plant sometimes into July. [5] In fall the turions, with some other plant material, often break away from the majority of the rooted plant and float to new areas. Those fragments can be found washing up along shorelines in late fall. The stems of the whorled water milfoil form into mats from branched and unbranched stems that grow to be 20 to 100 inches long.[ citation needed ]
Most whorled water milfoil occurs in semi-shallow ponds, lakes, marshes, ditches and slow running streams of lowland districts [6] Milfoil thrives in areas with a light sandy bottom and medium loamy soils. Overall, the plant grows best in still waters with alkaline soils. [7] Whorled water milfoil is sometimes found with or near other aquatic plants, such as some types of pondweed ( Potamogeton strictifolius ) and ( Potamogeton ogdenii ), water star-grass ( Heteranthera dubia ) and water-marigold ( Megalodonta beckii ). [8]
It is native in much of North America, the United Kingdom, Asia, and North Africa, and invasive to Ireland.[ citation needed ]
Whorled water-milfoil reproduces by producing turions between September and November each year. These over-wintering turions sink to the bottom of the floor where they remain dormant until February [Caffrey, 2006]. These fragments will give rise to numerous small thin roots that bed into soil to start growing in spring. The plants are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and are pollinated by wind.[ citation needed ]
Whorled water milfoil is a good water oxygenator in small quantities such as fish and frog ponds. It is also ideal in providing protection and respiration for fish spawn [7] Management techniques of whorled water milfoil are not exactly known, but natural competition with other invasive aquatic plants has been the main control so far. [9] There are a few management practices that some places are using, but they have not been approved for long-term usage.[ citation needed ]
Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments. They are also referred to as hydrophytes or macrophytes to distinguish them from algae and other microphytes. A macrophyte is a plant that grows in or near water and is either emergent, submergent, or floating. In lakes and rivers macrophytes provide cover for fish, substrate for aquatic invertebrates, produce oxygen, and act as food for some fish and wildlife.
Aldrovanda vesiculosa, commonly known as the waterwheel plant, is the sole extant species in the flowering plant genus Aldrovanda of the family Droseraceae. The plant captures small aquatic invertebrates using traps similar to those of the Venus flytrap. The traps are arranged in whorls around a central, free-floating stem, giving rise to the common name. This is one of the few plant species capable of rapid movement.
Myriophyllum is a genus of about 69 species of freshwater aquatic plants, with a cosmopolitan distribution. The center of diversity for Myriophyllum is Australia with 43 recognized species.
A turion is a type of bud that is capable of growing into a complete plant. A turion may be an underground bud. Many members of the genus Epilobium are known to produce turions at or below ground level.
Myriophyllum aquaticum is a flowering plant, a vascular dicot, commonly called parrot's-feather and parrot feather watermilfoil.
Potamogeton is a genus of aquatic, mostly freshwater, plants of the family Potamogetonaceae. Most are known by the common name pondweed, although many unrelated plants may be called pondweed, such as Canadian pondweed. The genus name means "river neighbor", originating from the Greek potamos (river) and geiton (neighbor).
Myriophyllum spicatum is native to Europe, Asia, and north Africa, but has a wide geographic and climatic distribution among some 57 countries, extending from northern Canada to South Africa. It is a submerged aquatic plant, grows in still or slow-moving water, and is considered to be a highly invasive species.
Biddle Street, Yatton is a 44.8 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) near the village of Yatton in North Somerset, notified in 1994.
Potamogeton crispus, the crisp-leaved pondweed, curly pondweed, curly-leaf pondweed or curled pondweed, is a species of aquatic plant (hydrophyte) native to Eurasia but an introduced species and often a noxious weed in North America.
Myriophyllum sibiricum is a species of water milfoil known by the common names shortspike watermilfoil, northern watermilfoil, and Siberian water-milfoil. It is native to Russia, China, and much of North America, where it grows in aquatic habitat such as ponds and streams. It generally grows over a meter long, its green stem drying white. It is lined with whorls of fanlike green leaves divided into many narrow, feathery lobes.
Potamogeton pusillus is a species of aquatic plant known by the common names small pondweed, lesser pondweed or least pondweed. It occurs in standing and slow-flowing freshwater habitats throughout the Northern Hemisphere.
Potamogeton compressus is a species of aquatic plant known by the common names grass-wrack pondweed, flatstem pondweed and eel-grass pondweed.
Potamogeton obtusifolius, known as blunt-leaved pondweed, is an aquatic plant in the genus Potamogeton. It grows mainly in mesotrophic to eutrophic lakes, ponds and ditches, rarely in brackish water. It occurs primarily in Central Europe, the British Isles, Fennoscandia and eastern North America.
Myriophyllum alterniflorum, known as alternate water-milfoil or alternateflower watermilfoil, is a species of water-milfoil. It is native to Europe and Asia,has been introduced to North America and inhabits aquatic habitat, such as ponds and streams.
Myriophyllum indicum is a species of water milfoil. It is native to India, where it grows in aquatic habitat such as ponds and streams. It generally grows over a meter long, with its stem lined with whorls of fleshy green leaves divided into many narrow lobes.
Potamogeton trichoides is a species of aquatic plant known by the common name hairlike pondweed, native to Europe and western Asia where it grows in calcareous, usually nutrient-rich standing or slow-flowing water.
Myriophyllum variifolium is a species of water milfoil native to eastern Australia where it grows in aquatic habitat such as ponds and streams.