Potamogeton robbinsii |
Potamogeton vaseyi |
|
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fern pondweed, potamot de Robbins, Robbin's pondweed |
potamot de Vasey, Vasey's pondweed |
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Rhizomes | present. |
absent. |
Cauline stems | terete, without spots, to 100 cm; glands absent. |
terete, without spots, 2–5 cm; glands absent. |
Turions | absent. |
common, axillary, 0.5–2 cm × 0.5–1.2 mm, soft; leaves ± 2-ranked; outer leaves 2–3 per side, base not corrugate, apex acute; inner leaves undifferentiated or rolled into tight, hardened structure. |
Leaves | submersed, conspicuously 2-ranked, sessile, stiffish; stipules persistent, conspicuous, adnate to base of blade about ± ¼ length of stipule, connate, greenish brown to white, ligulate, 0.5–2 cm, fibrous, shredding at tip, apex obtuse; blade dark green to reddish green, linear to lanceolate, not arcuate, 2–7(–12) cm × 3–4(–8) mm, base rounded, with basal lobes, not clasping, margins minutely spinulose to serrulate, not crispate, apex not hoodlike, acute, lacunae absent; veins 20–60, fine. |
submersed, or both submersed and floating, ± spirally arranged. |
Floating leaves | petioles continuous in color to apex, 5–25 mm; blade adaxially greenish brown, elliptic, spatulate, or obovate, 0.6–1.5 cm × 3–8 mm, base acute, apex obtuse; veins 5–9. |
|
Submersed leaves | sessile, delicate; stipules persistent, inconspicuous, convolute, free from blade, green to brown, not ligulate, 0.4–1.2 cm, not fibrous, not shredding at tip, apex attenuate; blade light green, linear-filiform, not arcuate, 2–8 cm × 0.1–1 mm, bases slightly tapering, without basal lobes, not clasping, margins entire, not crispate, apex not hoodlike, acute to almost bristle-tipped, lacunae present, rarely absent, 0–2 rows each side of midvein; veins 1(–3). |
|
Inflorescences | often branched; peduncles not dimorphic, axillary, erect, cylindric, 3–5(–7) cm; spikes not dimorphic, moniliform (i.e., beaded), 7–20 mm. |
unbranched, emersed; peduncles not dimorphic, terminal, ascending in flower, recurved in fruit, cylindric, 5–30 mm; spikes not dimorphic, cylindric or moniliform, 6–8 mm. |
Fruits | stipitate, brown, obliquely obovoid, turgid, abaxially and laterally keeled, 3–4(–5) × 2(–3.3) mm, lateral keels without points; beak erect, recurved at apex, 0.7–0.9 mm; sides without basal tubercles; embryo with less than 1 full spiral. |
sessile, green to brown, obliquely round-obovoid, compressed, abaxially keeled, not laterally keeled, 1.5–2.5 × 1.2–1.6 mm; beak erect, 0.3–0.5 mm; sides without basal tubercles; embryo with 1 full spiral. |
2n | = 52. |
= 28. |
Potamogeton robbinsii |
Potamogeton vaseyi |
|
Phenology | Flowering late summer–early fall. | Flowering and fruiting summer–fall. |
Habitat | Shallow to deep water of ponds, lakes, and slow-flowing rivers | Quiet waters of lakes, ponds, and rivers |
Elevation | 0–3000 m (0–9800 ft) | 50–500 m (200–1600 ft) |
Distribution |
AK; AL; CA; CT; ID; IL; IN; MA; ME; MI; MN; MT; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; UT; VT; WA; WI; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NS; NT; NU; ON; PE; QC; SK
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CT; IA; IL; IN; MA; ME; MI; MN; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; RI; VT; WI; NB; ON; QC
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Discussion | Potamogeton robbinsii is our most easily recognized species when it is fertile. It is the only species with branched inflorescences. The species, however, occurs in fairly deep water, forming large colonies that essentially cover the substrate. Only rarely do the plants flower. It also is the only species with truly auriculate leaves, the blades forming small lobes projecting past the stem on each side of the stem. Leaf blades of other Potamogeton species may have slightly rounded bases, but no others have lobes that actually protrude past the stem. The species has a fairly large disjunction; primarily known from the northern part of the flora, it also occurs in the Tensas River area, Baldwin County, Alabama. The Alabama population has been collected on at least two occasions over 40 years, once as recently as 1970. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
All of the original material of Potamogeton lateralis Morong, including the collection designated as the lectotype, has been studied (C. B. Hellquist et al. 1988). Every specimen, was a mixed collection of P. pusillus and P. vaseyi. Based on the results of the study, P. lateralis is taxonomically nomenclaturally invalid and should be rejected. Potamogeton vaseyi is an uncommon species that has submersed leaves very similar to P. pusillus subsp. gemmiparus. Floating leaves apparently are present only when the species is fertile, and the species often grows intermixed with that subspecies. Collections are consequently often a mixture of the two taxa. Also, sterile collections of either taxon can easily be mistaken for the other. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 22. | FNA vol. 22. |
Parent taxa | Potamogetonaceae > Potamogeton | Potamogetonaceae > Potamogeton |
Sibling taxa | ||
Name authority | Oakes: Magazine of horticulture, botany and all useful discoveries and improvements in rural affairs 7: 180. (1841) | J. W. Robbins: in A. Gray, Manual of Botany of the Northern United States (ed. 5) 485. (1867) |
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