Potamogeton oakesianus

J.W. Robbins

Oakes' Pondweed

G5Secure Found in 1 roadless area NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.138810
Element CodePMPOT030Q0
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
Oakes' pondweed (EN) Potamot d'Oakes (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 Date2024-09-30
Change Date2015-07-31
Edition Date2024-09-30
Edition AuthorsN. Ventrella (2024)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences81 - 300
Rank Reasons
Potamogeton oakesianus is a perennial aquatic forb occurring in slow-moving shallow, acidic waters of bogs, ditches, marshes, lakes, mudflats, pools, ponds, streams, and swamps of eastern North America from Ontario and Minnesota, south to Virginia, and north through Newfoundland and Labrador in the United States and Canada. Disjunct populations also potentially occur in Montana and British Columbia. There are an estimated 146 occurrences of this taxon, which are threatened by drainage and destruction of wetlands, water pollution, erosion, 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 oakesianus is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
Potamogeton oakesianus occurs in eastern North America from Ontario and Minnesota, south to Virginia, and north through Newfoundland and Labrador in the United States and Canada (FNA 2000). Disjunct populations also potentially occur in Montana and British Columbia (FNA 2000, Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team 2024). Range extent was estimated to be 2.9 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 146 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
Threat Impact Comments
Potamogeton oakesianus is somewhat threatened by drainage and destruction of wetlands and to a lesser extent by water pollution (Southern Appalachian Species Viability Project 2002). Additional threats are not widely documented but likely include erosion, 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 oakesianus occurs in "quiescent waters and along the sheltered shorelines of bogs, ditches (roadside), lakes (marshy), marshes, mudflats, ponds (beaver, bog, pothole, sinkhole), pools (beach, bog), springs, streams, and swamps" (Les 2020). It occupies shallow, acidic, soft water habitats.
Palustrine Habitats
HERBACEOUS WETLANDFORESTED WETLANDBog/fen
Other Nations (2)
CanadaN5
ProvinceRankNative
QuebecS4Yes
Island of NewfoundlandS4Yes
Prince Edward IslandS1Yes
LabradorS2Yes
OntarioS4Yes
Nova ScotiaS4Yes
New BrunswickS4Yes
United StatesN4
ProvinceRankNative
MaineSNRYes
TennesseeSNRYes
ConnecticutSNRYes
WisconsinS3Yes
Rhode IslandSNRYes
IndianaS1Yes
MassachusettsSNRYes
VermontSUYes
MontanaSNRYes
VirginiaS1Yes
South CarolinaS1Yes
MinnesotaS1Yes
New JerseyS2Yes
New YorkS5Yes
PennsylvaniaS1Yes
MichiganSNRYes
West VirginiaSHYes
New HampshireSNRYes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined

Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (1)
Virginia (1)
AreaForestAcres
Three RidgesGeorge Washington National Forest4,745
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. 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.
  8. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).
  9. Weakley, A.S., and Southeastern Flora Team. 2024. Flora of the southeastern United States. Edition of March 4, 2024. University of North Carolina Herbarium (NCU), North Carolina Botanical Garden, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. 2203 pp.