Potamogeton amplifolius

Tuckerman

Largeleaf Pondweed

G5Secure Found in 8 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.156283
Element CodePMPOT03020
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
largeleaf pondweed (EN) Potamot à grandes feuilles (FR)
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 Date1984-03-16
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 amplifolius is a perennial aquatic forb occurring throughout much of North America from British Columbia east to Newfoundland, Canada south to Georgia, and northwest to Colorado, Oregon, and California in the United States. There are over 800 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 amplifolius is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
Potamogeton amplifolius occurs throughout much of North America, from British Columbia east to Newfoundland, Canada south to Georgia, and northwest to Colorado, Oregon, and California in the United States (FNA 2000). This species is also native to Mexico in the state of Michoacán (POWO 2024). Range extent was estimated to be over 12 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data collected between 1993 and 2024 (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
Occurrences Comments
By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data documented between 1993 and 2024, it is estimated that there are more than 800 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
Threat Impact Comments
Potamogeton amplifolius 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 amplifolius occurs in various aquatic environments such as ditches, backwaters, bays, canals, lakes, rivers, sloughs, springs and ponds, with optimal growth occurring at water depths of 2.0–2.5 meters (Les 2020). This species does not tolerate eutrophic conditions and prefers high light sites with low total phosphorus levels to avoid algal blooms which increase turbidity.

Ecology

In shallow waters, plants fruit and die back in winter, while deeper populations remain physiologically active year-round, even under ice (Les 2020).

Reproduction

Flowering occurs from June to October, and fruits are eaten and likely dispersed by waterfowl (Les 2020).
Palustrine Habitats
FORESTED WETLANDBog/fen
Other Nations (2)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
WashingtonSNRYes
North CarolinaS1Yes
South DakotaS1Yes
MarylandS1Yes
CaliforniaSNRYes
District of ColumbiaSHYes
West VirginiaS4Yes
ArkansasSNRYes
VirginiaS1Yes
WisconsinSNRYes
IndianaSNRYes
ConnecticutSNRYes
North DakotaS3Yes
OhioSNRYes
IdahoSNRYes
MontanaSNRYes
VermontS5Yes
OklahomaSNRYes
New HampshireSNRYes
MissouriSNRYes
MichiganSNRYes
IllinoisS1Yes
KansasS2Yes
NebraskaS1Yes
ColoradoSHYes
AlabamaSNRYes
TennesseeS1Yes
Rhode IslandSNRYes
New YorkS5Yes
KentuckyS1Yes
MississippiSNRYes
MaineSNRYes
OregonSNRYes
WyomingS1Yes
PennsylvaniaS5Yes
MinnesotaSNRYes
IowaS1Yes
New JerseyS4Yes
GeorgiaS1Yes
MassachusettsSNRYes
CanadaN5
ProvinceRankNative
SaskatchewanS1Yes
Island of NewfoundlandS2Yes
New BrunswickS4Yes
ManitobaS3Yes
Prince Edward IslandS1Yes
British ColumbiaS5Yes
AlbertaS2Yes
QuebecS4Yes
Nova ScotiaS4Yes
OntarioS5Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined

Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (8)
California (4)
AreaForestAcres
Castle Crags AShasta-Trinity National Forest113
Castle Crags BShasta-Trinity National Forest1,619
East YubaTahoe National Forest17,968
Granite ChiefTahoe National Forest6,546
Montana (1)
AreaForestAcres
Saddle Mountain #168Kootenai National Forest14,675
Oregon (3)
AreaForestAcres
TenmileSiuslaw National Forest10,818
Twin LakesMt. Hood National Forest6,055
W. BoundaryWinema National Forest2,345
References (9)
  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. NatureServe. 2024. NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia.
  7. 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).
  8. 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.
  9. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).