Potamogeton natans

Floating-leaved pondweed

Family: Potamogetonaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Floating-leaved pondweed is a California native perennial found in coastal, northern California, Sierra Nevada, San Joaquin Valley, San Francisco Bay, Santa Barbara, Peninsular Ranges, and Modoc Plateau regions in shallow fresh or brackish water habitats including lakes, ponds, bogs, marshes, and streams at elevations up to 2,700 meters. Flowering from June to August, this aquatic plant produces small, inconspicuous green flowers in compact inflorescences less than 5 centimeters long. Growing with submerged stems up to 160 centimeters long, it develops both underwater and floating leaves in distinctive forms. Its underwater leaves are thin and linear, while floating leaves are broader, oblong to elliptical, 6 to 11 centimeters long with 17 to 37 visible veins and rounded tips. The plant produces small fruits 3.5 to 5 millimeters long with slightly concave sides.

Habitat: Shallow, fresh or brackish water, lakes, ponds, bogs, marshes, lagoons, streams

Bloom period: Jun-Aug

Elevation: < 2700 m

Bioregions: NCo, NCoR, CaRH, SNH, SnJV, SnFrB, SnBr, PR, MP

California counties: Humboldt, Plumas, Fresno, Lassen, Tulare, Tuolumne, Modoc, Sonoma, Sierra, Lake, El Dorado, Santa Clara, Mendocino, Inyo, Tehama, San Luis Obispo, Madera, Mono, Butte, Mariposa, Placer, San Bernardino, San Mateo, Siskiyou, Nevada, Trinity, Colusa, Yuba, Santa Cruz, Marin, Santa Barbara

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