Plant · GBIF taxon 2766030
Pickerelweed
Pontederia cordataAlso known as Pickerel Weed, Heartleaf Pickerelweed
Emergent aquatic perennials anchor their thick rhizomes deep into muddy substrate along sunny lake edges, sluggish streams, and marsh margins. Vibrant blue-purple flower spikes rise above glossy, heart-shaped leaves throughout summer, drawing hordes of bumblebees, butterflies, and native solitary bees. Young waterfowl take shelter among the dense clusters of stems while aquatic insects and small fish thrive in the underwater tangled root mats.
AquaticFloweringPerennial
1 / 7—observations
—countries
—peak records
Least ConcernConservation statusIUCN Red List categoriesLCNTVUENCREWEXLeast ConcernRed List categories, explained →
Diet & prey
- Photosynthetic (autotrophic)
Predators
- Waterfowl
- Muskrats
- Herbivorous insects
ThreatsWetland destruction, invasive aquatic weeds, altered hydrology, water pollution
HabitatsFreshwater marshes, pond shores, lake margins, ditches, sluggish streams
Life spanPerennial (rhizomes survive indefinitely)
Size / weightNot available
Classification
- OrderCommelinales
- FamilyPontederiaceae
- GenusPontederia
- SpeciesPontederia cordata
Range data is not available yet.
Interaction riskLow
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Very high
- Why interaction risk is low
- Safe to observe at a normal distance.
Responsible observation
- Observation: Look for vibrant blue-purple spikes blooming continuously from late spring through early autumn.
- Habitat context: Search along soft, muddy shorelines of calm ponds, sluggish rivers, and shallow marshes.
- Wading care: Avoid trampling shallow bank roots when viewing aquatic wildlife sheltered among the stems.
Frequent Companion "fragrant water lily" by USFWS Headquarters is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/. · cc-by
Frequent Companion no rights reserved, uploaded by Nonbinary-Naturalist · cc0
Competitor Peter O'Connor aka anemoneprojectors from Stevenage, United Kingdom / CC BY-SA 2.0 · cc-by-sa
Close Relative no rights reserved, uploaded by 葉子 · cc0
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