Elodea bifoliata

Two-leaf waterweed

Family: Hydrocharitaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Two-leaf waterweed is a California native perennial found in the Modoc Plateau in shallow waters and streams at elevations of 1,300 to 1,800 meters. Flowering from June to August, this plant produces delicate white flowers on slender underwater stems. Growing with thin, flaccid stems, it forms underwater meadows with distinctive leaf arrangements of two leaves per node. Its leaves are linear to narrowly elliptic, measuring 4.7 to 24.8 millimeters long and less than 2.5 millimeters wide, with rounded tips that sway gently in stream currents. The seeds are small ellipsoid structures densely covered in long hairs, helping the plant disperse and reproduce in aquatic environments.

Habitat: Shallow waters, streams

Bloom period: Jun-Aug

Elevation: 1300-1800 m

Bioregions: MP

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.