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Potamogeton richardsonii

(Benn.) Rydb.

Richardson's Pondweed

G5Secure Found in 18 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.133161
Element CodePMPOT030Y0
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
Synonyms
Potamogeton perfoliatus ssp. richardsonii(Benn.) Hulten
Other Common Names
Potamot de Richardson (FR) Red-head Pondweed (EN) Richardson's 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 Date2024-10-02
Change Date1984-04-16
Edition Date2024-10-02
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 richardsonii occurs in fresh to brackish waters of bays, ponds, marshes, springs, lakes, streams, and rivers of North America and east Siberia to Russia. There are over 1,000 estimated occurrences of this taxon, which are potentially threatened by development, water diversion, 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 richardsonii is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
Potamogeton richardsonii occurs in North America and east Siberia to Russia (POWO 2024). In North America, it occurs from Alaska and Yukon east to Nova Scotia, Canada south to Pennsylvania and west to California in the United States (FNA 2000). Range extent was estimated to be over 31 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens and photo-based observations collected 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
Although threats are not widely documented, Potamogeton richardsonii is likely threatened by development, water diversion, alteration of hydrology, erosion, pollution, 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. Potamogeton richardsonii is fairly tolerant of eutrophication and can persist at sites with high nutrient levels (Les 2020).
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Potamogeton richardsonii occurs in "fresh to slightly brackish bays, borrow pits, bottoms (river), canals (drainage), channels (backwater, muddy), ditches (irrigation), flats (tidal), floodplains, gravel pits, lagoons (freshwater), lakes (boggy, oligotrophic), marshes (intertidal, tidal), mudflats, oxbows, ponds (beaver, irrigation, quarry, roadside, stock, tailing, tundra), pools (perennial), potholes, reservoirs, rivers, sloughs (river), springs (swampy), streams, and swales" (Les 2020). This plant occurs in full sunlight or partial shade in both still and flowing alkaline waters, at depths from 0.03 to 4.1 meters, preferring sites where water levels fluctuate. It is is tolerant of turbidity and nutrient-enriched water.

Reproduction

Seeds are dispersed by water currents and are eaten by waterfowl, which may play a role in long-distance dispersal (Les 2020).
Palustrine Habitats
HERBACEOUS WETLANDFORESTED WETLAND
Other Nations (2)
CanadaN5
ProvinceRankNative
British ColumbiaS5Yes
SaskatchewanS4Yes
LabradorS2Yes
Northwest TerritoriesS4Yes
QuebecS4Yes
Island of NewfoundlandS1Yes
ManitobaS5Yes
Nova ScotiaS3Yes
Yukon TerritoryS5Yes
AlbertaS5Yes
OntarioS5Yes
New BrunswickS3Yes
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
ArizonaSNRYes
AlaskaSNRYes
WashingtonSNRYes
NebraskaSNRYes
UtahSNRYes
WyomingS3Yes
MontanaSNRYes
OregonSNRYes
MaineSNRYes
PennsylvaniaS3Yes
ColoradoS3Yes
WisconsinSNRYes
North DakotaSNRYes
IowaS4Yes
ConnecticutSNRYes
CaliforniaSNRYes
IllinoisS1Yes
VermontS4Yes
IndianaS3Yes
MichiganSNRYes
NevadaS2Yes
South DakotaSNRYes
OhioS4Yes
New HampshireSHYes
DelawareSNRYes
IdahoSNRYes
MassachusettsSNRYes
New YorkS5Yes
MinnesotaSNRYes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined———

—

Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (18)
Alaska (9)
AreaForestAcres
Chugach-13Chugach National Forest13,337
Johnson PassChugach National Forest152,508
KartaTongass National Forest52,117
Kenai LakeChugach National Forest213,172
Kenai MountainsChugach National Forest306,600
ResurrectionChugach National Forest224,615
Roaded DonutChugach National Forest968
Sheridan GlacierChugach National Forest224,683
Thorne RiverTongass National Forest72,983
Montana (5)
AreaForestAcres
Devils Gap #698Kootenai National Forest5,353
Freezeout MountainBeaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest97,305
Mt. Henry #666Kootenai National Forest13,603
Ten Lakes #683Kootenai National Forest48,545
Tenderfoot - Deep CreekLewis and Clark National Forest85,614
Pennsylvania (1)
AreaForestAcres
Allegheny FrontAllegheny National Forest7,430
Washington (1)
AreaForestAcres
Mt. BonaparteOkanogan National Forest10,891
Wyoming (2)
AreaForestAcres
Libby FlatsMedicine Bow-Routt National Forest11,107
Snowy RangeMedicine Bow-Routt National Forest29,660
References (7)
  1. 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.
  2. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2024. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2024).
  3. iNaturalist. 2024. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2024).
  4. 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.
  5. Les, D. 2020. Aquatic Monocotyledons of North America: Ecology, Life History, and Systematics. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL. 568 pp.
  6. 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).
  7. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).