Typha latifolia

The bulrush is a perennial species (3), which flowers in June and July (6); the seed heads begin to break up in autumn, and the downy seeds are dispersed by the wind (5). The bulrush colonises new sites in this way, after which it spreads by vegetative reproduction (3). The flowering spikes may persist until November (1). There have been very few uses of the bulrush in Britain, however in Nevada (USA) the Paiute Indians based their whole economy on this species; the yellow pollen was used as flour, and the stems and leaves were used to make boats (4).

The bulrush was termed 'reedmace' by botanists until the 1970s, but the common English name 'bulrush''has since been accepted (4). This robust species grows up to 2.5 m in height, and has linear leaves (2). The most characteristic feature of this plant, however, is the distinctive, dark brown busby-like flowering head (4), known as a 'spadix' (2). The individual flowers are tiny, closely packed and surrounded by slender hairs; female flowers, which produce seeds, are situated towards the bottom of the spadix, the male flowers are located towards the top, and in this species the male and female regions of the spadix are touching (2).

Common Cattail is a wetland species that most people are familiar with. Sometimes it hybridizes with Typha angustifolia (Narrow-Leaved Cattail), producing plants with characteristics that are intermediate between these two parents. Such plants are referred to Typha × glauca (Hybrid Cattail). Because the characteristics of Common Cattail, Narrow-Leaved Cattail, and Hybrid Cattail overlap with each other, it can be difficult to identify individual plants in the field. Generally, Common Cattail is larger in size with green to greyish blue leaves that span over ½" across. Its pistillate spikes are often ¾" across or more and they can exceed 1' in length. The staminate and pistillate spikes of Common Cattail are adjacent to each other or separated by less than ½". Narrow-Leaved Cattail has slender green leaves that are ½" across or less. Its pistillate spikes are less than ¾" across and they are less than 1' in length. The staminate and pistillate spikes of Narrow-Leaved Cattail are separated from each other by more than ½" (usually by a few inches).

This native perennial plant is about 4-9' tall and unbranched, consisting of 6 or more leaves and a flowering stalk. This stalk is light green to green, glabrous, stiff, and round in cross-section (terete). The leaves are up to 7½' long and 1" across. They are linear, green to bluish grey (often the latter), hairless, and rather flattened. Relative to the flowering stalk, the leaves are erect to slightly spreading; they originate from the base of the plant. Some leaves have a tendency to flop downward toward their tips. Leaf venation is parallel. There is a sheath at the base of each leaf. The flowering stalk terminates in a spike of staminate flowers and a spike of pistillate flowers. The staminate spike is above the pistillate spike; they are adjacent or separated by ½" or less. The staminate spike is up to 1' long and less than ¾" across; it is narrowly cylindrical in shape, light yellow to light brown, and densely packed with staminate flowers and abundant hairs. Each staminate flower bears 4 grains of pollen; its petals and sepals are reduced to bristles. After the pollen is released, the staminate spike quickly withers away. The pistillate spike is is up to 1½' long and less than 1¼" across; it is cylindrical in shape, greenish to blackish brown, and densely packed with pistillate flowers and abundant hairs. Each fertile pistillate flower has a stipe at least 1 mm. long, a single ovary, and a single style with a flattened stigma. Infertile pistillate flowers lack achenes, otherwise they are similar to the fertile pistillate flowers.  The blooming period occurs during early to mid-summer. Afterward, the fertile pistillate flowers are replaced by achenes (one achene each). The pistillate spikes persist into the autumn, releasing their achenes with chunky tufts of hair. The root system produces thick starchy rhizomes and fibrous roots. Vegetative colonies are often produced.

General: Cattail Family (Typhaceae). Cattails are herbaceous, rhizomatous perennial plants with long, slender green stalks topped with brown, fluffy, sausage-shaped flowering heads. Typha latifolia plants are 15-30 dm tall. The spike-like, terminal, cylindric inflorescence has staminate flowers above and pistillate flowers below with a naked axis between the staminate and pistillate flowers. The spike is green when fresh, becoming brown as it matures. The basal leaves are thin with parallel veins running the long, narrow length of the leaf. These plants are rhizomatous and colonial.

Flags, rushes, bulrushes, cat o’nine tails, Cossack asparagus, reed mace, baco (cattail)

Common Cattail is a common plant that occurs in every county of Illinois (see Distribution Map). In addition to North America, it is also native to Eurasia. Habitats include marshes, swamps, seeps, borders of rivers and ponds, and ditches. In marshes and other wetlands, this is often one of the dominant plants. Common Cattail can survive in badly degraded habitats, although it also occurs in natural habitats that are less disturbed. Faunal Associations

More info for the term: cover

Broadleaf cattail is a cosmopolitan species found in North America, Mexico, Great Britain, Eurasia, India, Africa, New Zealand, and Australia. In Canada, broadleaf cattail occurs in all provinces and the Northwest Territories [76]. In the United States, broadleaf cattail is native to all states except Hawaii, where it is introduced [212]. It also occurs in Puerto Rico; nativity to Puerto Rico is unknown [107]. Flora of North America provides a distributional map of broadleaf cattail.

Cattail hybrids are often identifiable by their distribution. Distributions of all 3 hybridizing cattail species overlap in only the east-central US coast and central California. Broadleaf cattail and southern cattail cooccur in a broad area of the southwestern United States and the extreme southern United States. Broadleaf cattail and narrow-leaved cattail distribution overlaps are more common and cover a broad area of the central and eastern United States and Canada. Cattail distribution maps are provided by Smith [194].

Typha latifolia fo. ambigua Kronf.:
Canada (North America)
United States (North America)

Note: This information is based on publications available through Tropicos and may not represent the entire distribution. Tropicos does not categorize distributions as native or non-native.

Typha latifolia L.:
Afghanistan (Asia)
Argentina (South America)
Australia (Oceania)
Brazil (South America)
Canada (North America)
Gabon (Africa & Madagascar)
Guatemala (Mesoamerica)
Honduras (Mesoamerica)
Japan (Asia)
Kyrgyzstan (Asia)
Kazakhstan (Asia)
Mexico (Mesoamerica)
Pakistan (Asia)
Russian Federation (Asia)
Tajikistan (Asia)
Turkmenistan (Asia)
United States (North America)
Uzbekistan (Asia)
China (Asia)

Note: This information is based on publications available through Tropicos and may not represent the entire distribution. Tropicos does not categorize distributions as native or non-native.

Alta., B.C., Man., N.B., Nfld. and Labr. (Nfld.), N.W.T., N.S., Ont., P.E.I., Que., Sask., Yukon; Ala., Alaska, Ariz., Ark., Calif., Colo., Conn., Del., Fla., Ga., Idaho. Ill., Ind., Iowa., Kans., Ky., La., Maine, Md., Mass., Mich., Minn., Miss., Mo., Mont., Nebr., Nev., N.H., N.J., N.Mex., N.Y., N.C., N.Dak., Ohio, Okla., Oreg., Pa., R.I., S.C., S.Dak., Tenn., Tex., Utah, Vt., Va., Wash., W.Va., Wis., Wyo.; Mexico; Central America; South America; Eurasia; Africa; introduced, Australia (Tasmania (introduced)).

Canada

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

The bulrush is widespread in Britain, but is less common in the north and west (2). It seems to have increased in frequency during the 20th Century and is more common in Scotland, Wales and northern England than it was in the 1960s; the reasons for this increase are not yet clear (3). It has a broad global distribution, being found from the Arctic Circle to 30°S, with the exception of central and southern Africa, south Asia, Australia and Polynesia (2).

Distribution: Europe, Central and South East Asia.

For current distribution, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Web site. Broad-leaved cattails are common throughout the United States and temperate and tropical places worldwide (Hickman 1993). Typha latifolia occurs in coastal and valley marshes at elevations lower than 2,000 m.

More info for the terms: marsh, rhizome

This description provides characteristics that may be relevant to fire ecology, and is not meant for identification. Keys for identification are available (e.g., [46,58,71,82,103,172,180,216]).

Aboveground description: Broadleaf cattail is an aquatic or semiaquatic emergent perennial. Morphological and physiological ecotypes as well as hybrids make field identification difficult [82]. Plants are normally 3 to 10 feet (1-3 m) tall, reedlike, and extensively clonal [98,122,172]. Broadleaf cattail stems are stout, cylindrical, and unbranched [5,172]. Flowering stem length is typically equal to or somewhat longer than leaf length [143]. Leaves are thick, linear, flat, and measure 6 to 29 mm wide [5,98]. For plants from Michigan and the southeastern United States, the upper limit of leaf width is less, 15 mm [72,216]. Broadleaf cattail can be highly productive. In a single growing season, a plant grown from seed produced 34 aerial shoots that were 18 to 24 inches (46-61 cm) tall, 29 shoots that were 4 to 18 inches (10-46 cm) tall, 35 shoots measuring 2 to 4 inches (5-10 cm), and 104 lateral buds [238].

Numerous tiny, dense, felty flowers occur in a terminal spike that is 0.7 to 2 inches (1.8-5 cm) thick [46,110,143,172]. Male flowers make up the upper, narrower half of the spike and female flowers the lower, slightly wider half [82,108]. Over 1,000 flowers were counted in the staminate spike portion of one plant [98]. Male and female spikes are rarely separated. A small space of less than 0.6 inch (1.5 cm) may occur [82,108], but separations of up to 1.5 inches (4 cm) are also reported [82]. Some systematists recognize plants with separated male and female spikes as form ambigua [187,216]. Spikes are typically 6 times as long as they are thick [46,110,143,172]. Only female flowers are persistent [143,172]. Fertilized flowers produce single-seeded, nutlike achenes up to 1.5 mm long [122,227]. Long slender hairs at the base allow for wind and water transport of the "eventually dehiscent" seeds [99,172].

Belowground description:
Floras from throughout broadleaf cattail's range describe its rhizomes as tough, stout, coarse, and extensive [36,98,99,172]. Rhizomes grow horizontally just below the soil surface [82]. In a review, lateral rhizomes were reportedly up to 28 inches (70 cm) long, with diameters of 0.2 to 1.2 inches (0.5-3 cm) [76]. Shallow fibrous roots are attached to the rhizomes [10,47].

Some indicate that broadleaf cattail produces 2 types of rhizomes; one that is "more superficial", thin, "feathery", and multibranched, and another that is deeper, thicker, and branching at the base [181]. Rhizome growth and depth are likely affected by substrate texture, moisture, and/or temperature. In the Skokie Marsh of Illinois, the thickest broadleaf cattail rhizomes were 3 to 3.9 inches (7.5-10 cm) deep [190]. From an alluvial basin in central Iowa, long, stout broadleaf cattail rhizomes occurred at 6- to 8-inch (15-20 cm) depths. Rhizomes were soft and spongy, with internal air spaces [96]. For more on vegetative growth, see Vegetative regeneration.

© 2003 George W. Hartwell Variation/hybrids: Differences in productivity, height, flowering, and other developmental characteristics were evident when broadleaf cattail seeds were collected from various parts of the United States and grown in a common area [147]. High levels of ecotypic variation and the widespread cooccurrence of 2 to 3 compatible cattail species can make field identification difficult. Goodrich and Neese [73] provide specific local information useful in distinguishing broadleaf cattail from similar-looking sympatric species. Broadleaf cattail × southern cattail and broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail hybrids are described in the following references: [36,56,58,82,91,140]. Often broadleaf cattail hybrids are distinguished by their distribution. For more information, see General Distribution.

Broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail hybrids, often referred to as T × glauca, have been described as more "robust" and "competitively superior" than either parent in fluctuating water levels, although hybrids are infertile and reproduce only vegetatively [122,216]. Invasiveness of broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail is discussed briefly in Other Management Considerations [234].

Plants up to 100-200 cm high. Stem thick, terete. Leaves linear-broadly linear, 8-20 mm broad. Flowering stem equal to or somewhat shorter than the leaves. Male and female parts of inflorescence contiguous. Female parts slightly longer than the male parts at maturity, cylindric, soft, dark brown or blackish brown. Male flowers with simple hairs and pollen in tetrads; filaments 2-3 times as long as anther. Female flower ebracteate, ovary 1/3-1/4 the length of stipe, stigma lanceolate or rhombic, fleshy, dark brown or persistent brown, much surpassing the perianth hairs.

Erect shoots 150--300 cm; flowering shoots 1--2 cm thick in middle, stems 3--7 mm thick near inflorescence. Leaves: usually glaucous when fresh; sheath sides papery or membranous, margins narrowly clear, summit tapered into blade to distinctly shouldered, or rarely with firm, papery auricles; mucilage glands at sheath-blade transition usually colorless, obscure, absent from sheath center and blade; widest blades on shoot 10--23(--29) mm wide when fresh, 5--20 mm when dry, distal blades about equaling inflorescence. Inflorescences: staminate spikes contiguous with pistillate or in some clones separated by to 4(--8) cm of naked axis, about as long as pistillate, ca. 1--2 cm thick at anthesis; staminate scales colorless to straw-colored, filiform, simple, ca. 4  0.05 mm; pistillate spikes in flower pale green drying brownish, later blackish brown or reddish brown, in fruit often mottled with whitish patches of pistil-hair tips, 5--25 cm  5--8 mm in flower, 24--36 mm thick in fruit; compound pedicels in fruit bristle-like, variable in same spike, 1.5--3.5 mm; pistillate bracteoles absent. Staminate flowers 5--12 mm; anthers 1--3 mm, thecae yellow, apex dark brown; pollen in tetrads. Pistillate flowers 2--3 mm in flower, 10--15 mm in fruit; pistil-hair tips colorless, whitish in mass, not enlarged; stigmas persistent, forming solid layer on spike surface, pale green in flower, drying brownish, then reddish brown or usually distally blackish, spatulate, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 0.6--1  0.2--0.25 mm; carpodia exceeded by and hidden among pistil hairs, straw-colored, apex rounded. Seeds numerous. 2n = 30.

Typha latifolia, broad-leaved cattail, is distinguished from T. angustifolia, narrow-leaved cattail, by the relative width of the leaf and the position of the staminate and pistillate portions of the spadix (heads). Typha latifolia has 6-23 mm wide leaves that are flat, sheathing, and pale grayish-green in color. T. angustifolia has 3-8 mm wide leaves that are full green and somewhat convex on back (Agricultural Rea. Service 1971). In T. latifolia the staminate and pistillate heads are contiguous or nearly so, whereas in T. angustifolia the heads are separated by approximately 3 cm.

Cattail fruits differ among the two major species. T. angustifolia fruits are about 5-8 mm long with hairs arising above the middle. T. latifolia fruits are about 1 cm long with hairs arising near the base (Agricultural Rea. Service 1971).

Common Cattail is a common plant that occurs in every county of Illinois (see Distribution Map). In addition to North America, it is also native to Eurasia. Habitats include marshes, swamps, seeps, borders of rivers and ponds, and ditches. In marshes and other wetlands, this is often one of the dominant plants. Common Cattail can survive in badly degraded habitats, although it also occurs in natural habitats that are less disturbed. Faunal Associations

More info for the terms: aerenchyma, density, marsh, minerotrophic, natural, rhizome

Throughout its range, broadleaf cattail is most common in freshwater to slightly brackish marshes, ponds, lakes, ditches, swales, and slow-moving river sites [30,58,172,180].

Climate: Broadleaf cattail's wide distribution implies a wide tolerance of climatic conditions. Broadleaf cattail occurs in tropical, subtropical, southern and northern temperate, humid coastal, and dry continental climates [76]. The following climate descriptions represent some widely different climates experienced in broadleaf cattail habitats in the northern and southernmost portions of its North American range.

Northern habitats: Scattered broadleaf cattail populations occur in central Alaska, where winter temperatures are as low as -31 °F (-34 °C) [76]. Ponds in open subarctic woodlands near Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, occur in subarctic-continental climates and remain frozen from late September to mid- or late May. Winters are long and cold; summers are cool and short with very long periods of sunlight. On 21 June, it is light for 20 hours [60]. Daily temperatures can vary widely in broadleaf cattail marshes of the Ottawa River between Ontario and Quebec. Daily average minimum and maximum temperatures for January are 5 and 23 °F (-15 and -5 °C) and for July are 54.5 and 77 °F (12.5 and 25 °C). An average of 120 days are frost free [42].

Southern or desert habitats: Broadleaf cattail occurs in Diamond Pond in the semiarid desert of Harney County, Oregon. Relative humidity is low, and evaporation is high. A typical growing season is 80 to 117 days. Annual rainfall averages 7.9 to 12 inches (200-300 mm), and snow levels average 33 inches/year. Daily and seasonal temperatures fluctuate widely. In nearby Burns, Oregon, temperature extremes of -33 °F (-36 °C) and 100 °F (39 °C) have been reported [229]. Broadleaf cattail is also found on the edges of Mitry Lake near Yuma, Arizona. This site received 3.5 inches (89 mm) of precipitation in 1963 and 1.5 inches (38 mm) in 1964. Minimum and maximum temperatures in 1964 were 31 °F (-0.5 °C) in January and 104 °F (40 °C) in July [145]. Broadleaf cattail and narrow-leaved cattail-California bulrush communities in southeastern Texas experience frequent droughts and occasional hurricanes. Typically, there are only 6 or so days of freezing temperatures. In Port Arthur, rainfall averages 51.8 inches (1,320 mm). Over a 20-year period, precipitation averages ranged from 31 to 66 inches (840-1,700 mm) [124]. In treeless wet prairies of southern Florida's Everglades region, broadleaf cattail occupies sites with high summer rainfall, high humidity, mild winters, and often a midwinter dry season [135].

Elevation: Broadleaf cattail occupies sites from sea level to 7,500 feet (2,300 m) throughout North America [58]. Elevations at more narrow geographical ranges are given below.

Elevation range of broadleaf cattail by state or region State/region Elevation (feet) Arizona 3,500-7,000 [110] California below 6,500 [98]; broadleaf cattail is the only California cattail found above 3,000 [143] Colorado 4,000-7,500 [92] eastern Idaho 2,980-5,740 [86] central and eastern Montana 1,950-6,350 [90] Nevada 3,900-6,600 [108]; 3,900-5,000 in central-southern Nevada [14] New Mexico 4,000-8,000 [142] Utah 4,200-6,910 [227]; up to 7,000 in the Uinta Basin [73] Adirondack Uplands 100-1,700 [116] Pacific Northwest low to midelevations [172]

Soils: Broadleaf cattail tolerates many soil textures, nutrient levels, moisture regimes, and pH levels. Descriptions of soil types as well and flooding, drought, and salinity tolerances are described below.

Texture, pH, and fertility: Sand, silt, loam, and clay substrates are described in broadleaf cattail habitats. Acid to basic soils with low or high levels of nutrients are tolerated. In the Cariboo Forest Region of British Columbia, broadleaf cattail marshes occupy silty clay loam soils with seasonal or permanent water up to 39 inches (100 cm) deep [196]. The top 4 inches (10 cm) of wetland soils on the Pumice Plain of Mount St Helens, Washington, were predominantly silt (67.2-80.7%). Organic matter was low (<0.54%), and pH was 5.7 to 7.2 [210]. Broadleaf cattail in oxbow lakes along the Athabasca River in Alberta occupied basic sites with a pH of up to 9.2 and water depths up to 9.4 inches (24 cm) [132]. Germination of broadleaf cattail seed from central Alberta was not affected at pH levels 4, 7, or 12 [178]. In the Lake Agassiz Peatlands Natural Area of Minnesota, broadleaf cattail was indicative of weakly minerotrophic waters with calcium levels of 3 to10 ppm [97]. In Wisconsin, broadleaf cattail occurred in water with less than 50 ppm and in waters with more than 150 ppm of calcium carbonate [37]. Broadleaf cattail marshes of the Ottawa River between Ontario and Quebec occupy the most fertile temporarily flooded sites available [42]. Detailed descriptions of soil fertility in broadleaf cattail stands in Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida are provided by Boyd and Hess [20]. In these areas, broadleaf cattail standing crop biomass was positively correlated with the concentration of phosphorus in the soil and water (r =0.69).

Floating mats: Sometimes broadleaf cattail occurs on floating mats with minimal soil development. In a freshwater marsh northeast of Sackville, New Brunswick, floating mats of broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail were 16 to 24 inches (40-60 cm) thick in water 31 to 39 inches (80-100 cm) deep. Developing small mats got their buoyancy from aerenchyma (tissue with air spaces) in the rhizomes, while older, thicker mats floated on trapped air bubbles produced during anaerobic decomposition [101]. In oxbow lakes along the Athabasca River in Alberta, broadleaf cattail occurred on floating mats in nutrient-poor lakes and was rooted on more nutrient-rich sites [132].

Soil salinity: Broadleaf cattail tolerates brackish waters; however, salinity tolerance may differ with developmental stage. Choudhuri [27] found that broadleaf cattail germination decreased with increasing salinity, and no seeds germinated above 1 atm of osmotic pressure. However, broadleaf cattail was "quite tolerant" of salinity as a seedling and as an established plant. In marshes of southeastern Louisiana, broadleaf cattail occurred at salt levels up to 1.13% [171]. In oxbow lakes along the Athabasca River of Alberta, broadleaf cattail occurred where salinity, measured as water conductivity, was 260 to 1,380 μs/cm [132]. A review of the vegetative characteristics of prairie marshes in western Canada reports that broadleaf cattail tolerates salinity levels of less than 10 mS/cm [189].

Flooding: Broadleaf cattail is tolerant of fluctuating water levels [189] and some flooding; however, death or colonization failure has occurred at flood levels as low as 25 inches (63 cm) [197], and stands grow in 3 feet (1 m) of water in wetlands of southeastern Alberta [111]. Flood tolerance has been associated with rhizome production, season, age, associated vegetation, and disturbances.

Broadleaf cattail grew in a maximum water depth of 27 inches (68 cm) in monoculture ponds created at the W. K. Kellogg Biological Station of Michigan and in a maximum depth of 24 inches (61 cm) in ponds with narrow-leaved cattail [81]. In the same ponds, broadleaf cattail grew at 31-inch (80 cm) depths in May but was restricted to less than 31-inch (80 cm) depths in September [77]. In experimental ponds at the University of Arkansas, broadleaf cattail died when water depths exceeded 37 inches (95 cm), and broadleaf cattail density was greatest at 8.7-inch (22 cm) depths. Broadleaf cattail height increased with increased water depths, but plants flowered only when roots were not submerged [75]. In a storage pool at the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge in New York, broadleaf cattails less than 1 year old died when water levels were at or above 18 inches (46 cm). Two-year-old seedlings did not spread when water levels were 18 to 20 inches (46-51 cm), and at depths over 25 inches (63 cm), even well-established plants died [197].

In controlled field and greenhouse studies, broadleaf cattail and broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail rhizome production decreased in water levels of 12 inches (30 cm) or more [225]. In the 1st year of pond flooding in areas drawn down for 2 to 5 years in northwestern Minnesota's Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge, broadleaf cattail and broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail grew well at all water depths. After 3 years of flooding, broadleaf cattail death was substantial in 18 inches (46 cm) of water. Broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail growth and survival were good in up to 24 inches (61 cm) of water. By the 5th flooded year, broadleaf cattail was dead in all continuously flooded areas, but survival was good in temporarily flooded areas [93]. In the Crescent Pond south of Lake Manitoba, the density of broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail was greatest at 9.8-inch (25 cm) and 39-inch (100 cm) depths. Density was lowest at 33 inches (85 cm). Shoot height generally increased with increasing water depths, suggesting a plastic growth response [220].

Flooded conditions after cutting or burning often result in death. Abovewater plant material is necessary to tolerate flooding. When broadleaf cattail and broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail stems were cut below the water surface and kept flooded, both species died [225]. Broadleaf cattail rhizomes in a highly anaerobic environment in southern Michigan maintained high concentrations of oxygen as long as some portion of the plant remained above water. Plants cut below water 3 times in a growing season experienced almost complete belowground death. Researchers suggested that aerenchyma throughout the stems and rhizomes transported oxygen from the atmosphere to the rhizomes [183].

Drought tolerance: Broadleaf cattail is described as "fairly drought tolerant" [89]. In the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge on the northern end of Cayuga Lake in New York, broadleaf cattail stands grew in 0.9 inch (2.2 cm) of standing water in June but were dry in July and August [57]. In marshes of Utah that were drained and kept dry for 2 years, there was 100% broadleaf cattail mortality [164]. The potential for broadleaf cattail regrowth with flooding was not discussed.

More info for the terms: alliance, bog, cover, fen, marsh, natural, succession, swamp

Broadleaf cattail is typical of early-seral, open-canopy communities.
It occurs immediately or soon after disturbance in moist or wet habitats and occurs
early in the primary succession of open water or debris flows. In forested
habitats, broadleaf cattail persists only temporarily in disturbed sites.
Broadleaf cattail occurred with up to 39% cover after a severe fire in pondcypress (Taxodium
distichum var. imbricarium) domes near Gainesville, Florida. Five years
after the fire, broadleaf cattail cover ranged from 0% to 5% [54].

Often wetlands are dominated by one or just a few clonal species occurring
in zones or concentric rings that are largely determined by flooding and
water level tolerances [41,146,209].
Numerous wetland plant communities and habitat types are described, and
broadleaf cattail is often recognized as a dominant species.
United States:

Alaska:

• broadleaf cattail floating wet mat communities in the northwestern part of Tanana
  Flats south of Fairbanks [174]

California:

•  

• bulrush (Scirpus spp.)-cattail tule marshes common in the Central Valley [24]

• brackish hardstem bulrush (Schoenoplectus acutus var. acutus)-broadleaf cattail
  marshes common in San Francisco Bay [137]

• tule marshes along the Sacramento and San Joaquin
  rivers; marshes part of wet grasslands Forest and Range Ecosystem No. 41 [67]

• tule marsh potential natural vegetation type [115]

• tule marsh and cattail-sedge (Carex spp.) communities; variants of the
  wetland Rangeland Cover Type (Cheatham and Haller, cited in [2])

Colorado:

• softstem bulrush (S. tabernaemontani)-broadleaf cattail and broadleaf cattail wetlands
  throughout the state (references in [8])

Florida:

• floating island type vegetation dominated by beggarticks (Bidens spp.),
  broadleaf cattail, and smartweed (Polygonum spp.) in Orange Lake in Alachua County [139]

• broadleaf cattail marshes and cattail associations near brackish water in southern Florida [41]

Idaho:

• broadleaf cattail habitat types along ponds and reservoirs at
  elevations of 2,980 to 5,740 feet (909-1,750 m) in the east [86]

• broadleaf cattail plant associations throughout the state [104]

• broadleaf cattail-softstem bulrush marshes in the Chilly Slough Wetland Conservation Area
  in Custer County [237]

Illinois:

• broadleaf cattail-tussock sedge (Carex stricta) communities along creek
  borders in Cook County's Bluff Spring Fen Nature Preserve [200]

• broadleaf cattail dominated marshes in the Gavin Bog and Prairie Nature Preserve in Lake County [204]

Kansas:

• softstem bulrush-cattail-bur-reed-rush (Sparganium-Juncus spp.)
  in swales and river system depressions; southern and narrow-leaved cattail
  possible, broadleaf cattail probable

• cattail-Olney threesquare (Scirpus americanus) in oxbows and low areas along creeks and streams;
  all cattail species possible

• cattail-scouringrush horsetail-sedge (Equisetum hyemale) on
  hillsides and bluffs in river valleys; broadleaf and/or narrow-leaved cattail may dominate [123]

Louisiana:

• broadleaf cattail-California bulrush (S. californicus) associations in southeastern freshwater marshes [171]

Montana:

• broadleaf cattail herblands in riparian areas [12]

• broadleaf cattail habitat types in northwestern Montana [18] and central and eastern Montana [90]

Nebraska:

• annual wildrice (Zizania aquatica)-broadleaf
  cattail and broadleaf cattail-hardstem bulrush communities in Cherry County [209]

New Mexico:

• broadleaf cattail-Olney threesquare and broadleaf cattail-rice cutgrass (Leersia oryzoides)
  community types in the upper and/or middle Rio Grande watersheds [52]

• broadleaf cattail-common threesquare (Schoenoplectus pungens
  var. pungens) communities widespread in Pecos and Rio Grande basins, likely throughout New Mexico

• softstem bulrush-broadleaf cattail vegetation throughout New Mexico [160]

Nevada:

• broadleaf cattail western herbaceous vegetation type within the
  cattail-bulrush (Schoenoplectus spp.) semipermanently flooded herbaceous alliance [165]

• tule marshes around large lakes; marshes part of wet
  grasslands forest and range ecosystem No. 41 [67]

North Carolina:

• broadleaf cattail-rush-Jamaica swamp sawgrass (Cladium mariscus subsp.
  jamaicense) and rush-broadleaf cattail-Virginia saltmarsh mallow (Kosteletzkya virginica)
  freshwater marsh communities on Shackleford Bank [7]

• interdune pond communities (vegetation varies with water depth)

• broadleaf cattail-black rush (Juncus roemerianus) tidal
  freshwater marsh communities [184]

• cattail-bulrush hydric freshwater marsh associations on the
  Coastal Plain; broadleaf and narrow-leaved cattail common [226]

Oklahoma:

• broadleaf cattail herbaceous vegetation associations on floodplains, backswamps, and lake margins

• broadleaf cattail-powdery alligator-flag (Thalia dealbata)
  associations in marshes, ponds and on lake margins in eastern and central Oklahoma [100]

Pennsylvania:

• broadleaf cattail palustrine emergent wetland vegetation types in
  Gettysburg National Military Park [236]

Utah:

• hardstem bulrush-broadleaf cattail marshes around Utah Lake in Provo Bay and
  Powell's Slough [21]

• tule marshes on old beds of the Great Salt Lake;
  marshes part of wet grasslands Forest and Range Ecosystem No. 41 [67]

Washington:

• hardstem bulrush-broadleaf cattail communities in ponds with 1- to 3-foot
  (0.3-0.9 m) deep water in steppe vegetation in the Columbia Basin [39,61]

• broadleaf cattail plant associations in eastern National Forests [113]

• broadleaf cattail-toad rush (Juncus bufonius) community types in narrow seeps on
  the Pumice Plains of Mount St Helens [43]

West Virginia:

• broadleaf cattail-bog goldenrod/sphagnum (Solidago uliginosa/Sphagnum recurvum-S.
  imbricatum) communities in Laurel Run Bog

• broadleaf cattail/bristly dewberry/recurved sphagnum (Rubus hispidus/S. recurvum)
  communities in Cupp Run Swamp [217]

Wyoming:

• broadleaf cattail cover types on wet or moist sites throughout the state [32]

Western and central United States and Canada:

• broadleaf cattail community types at low elevations of Utah and southeastern Idaho [176]

• semiaquatic wetlands of the rooted emergent class dominated by broadleaf cattail
  and hardstem bulrush in Idaho and western Montana [173]

• broadleaf cattail types in semipermanently and saturated palustrine wetlands in the prairie potholes of north-central
  United States and south-central Canada [106]

• broadleaf cattail/broadleaf arrowhead (Sagittaria latifolia) plant associations
  in Wyoming, Nebraska, and Colorado [105]

• broadleaf cattail marshes in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska, and New Mexico

• bulrush-cattail marshes in the northern Great Plains
  (Manitoba, Minnesota, Montana, and North and South Dakota)

• Olney threesquare-cattail communities in the central and southern Great Plains
  (Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma,
  and Texas); broadleaf, narrow-leaved, and southern cattail possible

• cattail-American lotus (Nelumbo lutea) in
  Oklahoma and Texas; broadleaf and southern cattail common [186]

Canada:

Alberta:

• softstem bulrush-broadleaf cattail reed swamp
  associations of large sloughs and lakes in central Alberta [130]

British Columbia:

• broadleaf cattail marsh associations in the Cariboo Forest Region [196]

Ontario:

• broadleaf cattail vegetation types in marshes along
  the Ottawa River between Ontario and Quebec [42]

Fresh to slightly brackish water or wet soil; 0--2300m.

Depth range based on 8 specimens in 1 taxon.

Environmental ranges
  Depth range (m): 1 - 1
 
Note: this information has not been validated. Check this *note*. Your feedback is most welcome.

Comments: Cattails have a cosmopolitan distribution and a wide ecological amplitude. Typha can be found in wetlands, sedge meadows, along slow moving streams, river banks, and lake shores. The plant is found in areas of widely fluctuating water levels such as roadside ditches, reservoirs and other disturbed wet soil areas. Cattails commonly invade the pelagic zones of bogs (Gustafson 1976). Typical associates include Phragmites australiis, Lythrum salicaria, Spartina sp., Acorus calamus, Scirpus sp., and Sagittaria latifolia.

Typha latifolia is the only species of cattail usually found in relatively undisturbed habitats (Smith 1967). It is found throughout North America from sea level to 2134 M (7000 feet) elevation. The tolerance of T. latifolia to high concentrations of lead, zinc, copper, and nickel has been demonstrated (Taylor and Crowder 1984). This species has been employed in secondary waste water treatment schemes (Gopal and Sharma 1980).

Narrow-leaved cattail can grow in deeper water compared to T. latifolia, although both species reach maximum growth at a water depth of 50 cm (20 inches) (Grace and Wetzel 1981). A robust hybrid between narrow-leaved and broad-leaved cattail, Typha x glauca, has similar habitat requirements to T. angustifolia.

Typha latifolia is found in the most favorable sites where it competes against other species. T. angustifolia and T. domingensis are restricted to less favorable and more saline habitats when they occur with T. latifolia (Gustafson 1976). Typha latifolia often displaces T. angustifolia in shallow (<15 cm) water, restricting the latter species to deep water (Grace and Wetzel 1981). Theodore Cochran (pers. comm), of the University of Wisconsin-Madison herbarium states that most early herbarium specimens are T. latifolia and only recently have T. angustifolia specimens been collected from Wisconsin wetlands.

Cattails can grow on a wide gradient of substrate types. Wet pure sand, peat, clay and loamy soils have been documented under cattail stands. World wide distribution of cattails is summarized by Morton (1975).

Grows on mud or in shallow water at the margins of lakes, ditches, ponds and canals, and less commonly beside streams and rivers. It shows a preference for sites that are rich in nutrients (3).

Adaptation: Typha latifolia generally occurs in shallower water than Typha angustifolia. Compared to T. angustifolia, T. latifolia is exploitative in its ability to clone rapidly and produce a large leaf surface area, which may contribute to its superior competitive ability (Grace and Wetzel 1982). Typha latifolia has been found to be tolerant of water level fluctuations and moderate soil salinity. Cattailspreads both vegetatively and by seed, particularly under drawdown (Shay et al. 1986)^.

Cattails are always found in or near water, in marshes, ponds, lakes and depressions. They are obligate wetland indicator plant species. Cattails tolerate perennial flooding, reduced soil conditions and moderate salinity. With influxes of nutrient or freshwater, cattails are aggressive invaders in both brackish salt marshes and freshwater wetlands.

Cattails, like many emergent wetland species, tolerate flood drawdown cycles that occur to varying degrees in different wetland and riparian systems. Flood and drought are disturbance factors that vary in frequency, magnitude, and predictability. Frequency relates to the number of episodes per unit time while magnitude of flooding can be expressed in terms of water volume, velocity, gradient, depth, duration, and season of inundation. When planting cattails, the flood-draw-down cycles must be taken into consideration for successful revegetation.

Planting: Typha species may be planted from bare rootstock or seedlings from container stalk or directly seeded into the soil. Bare rootstock or seedlings are preferred revegetation methods where there is moving water. Typha seeds germinate readily and are a cost-effective means to propagate cattail on moist soils. To ensure a long-term stable ecosystem, it is recommended that Typha be just one of the species in the mix for wetland restoration.

Seed Collections: Select seed collection sites where continuous stands with few intermixed species can easily be found. At each collection location, obtain permission for seed collection.

In Great Britain and/or Ireland:
Foodplant / saprobe
sporodochium of Arthrinium dematiaceous anamorph of Arthrinium sporophleum is saprobic on dead leaf of Typha latifolia
Remarks: season: 3-4

Foodplant / sap sucker
adult of Chilacis typhae sucks sap of seed head of Typha latifolia

Foodplant / spot causer
Colletotrichum coelomycetous anamorph of Colletotrichum typhae causes spots on live leaf of Typha latifolia

Foodplant / feeds on
larva of Donacia aquatica feeds on root of Typha latifolia

Plant / resting place / among
cocoon of Donacia cinerea may be found among roots of Typha latifolia

Foodplant / open feeder
adult of Donacia vulgaris grazes on leaf of Typha latifolia

Foodplant / saprobe
fruitbody of Epithele typhae is saprobic on dead leaf base of Typha latifolia
Other: minor host/prey

Foodplant / saprobe
immersed conidioma of Hymenopsis coelomycetous anamorph of Hymenopsis typhae is saprobic on dead stem of Typha latifolia
Remarks: season: 5-6

Foodplant / saprobe
apothecium of Lachnum controversum is saprobic on dead stem of Typha latifolia
Remarks: season: 5-10
Other: minor host/prey

Foodplant / saprobe
fruitbody of Lindtneria trachyspora is saprobic on dead, decayed leaf of Typha latifolia

Foodplant / feeds on
Notaris bimaculatus feeds on stem of Typha latifolia

Foodplant / saprobe
immersed pseudothecium of Ophiobolus typhae is saprobic on submerged, dead, attached leaf base of Typha latifolia

Plant / resting place / within
puparium of Phaonia atriceps may be found in leaf-sheath of Typha latifolia

Foodplant / feeds on
pycnidium of Phoma coelomycetous anamorph of Phoma typharum feeds on Typha latifolia

Foodplant / spot causer
pycnidium of Phyllosticta coelomycetous anamorph of Phyllosticta typhina causes spots on leaf (tip) of Typha latifolia
Remarks: season: 7

Plant / resting place / among
cocoon of Plateumaris sericea may be found among root of Typha latifolia

Foodplant / saprobe
fruitbody of Psathyrella typhae is saprobic on dead stem (just above waterline) of Typha latifolia
Other: major host/prey

Foodplant / saprobe
covered, black pycnidium of Septoria coelomycetous anamorph of Septoria menispora is saprobic on dead leaf of Typha latifolia
Remarks: season: 3-4

Foodplant / saprobe
often numerous, immersed, black pycnidium of Stagonospora coelomycetous anamorph of Stagonospora typhoidearum is saprobic on sometimes locally discoloured leaf of Typha latifolia

Foodplant / feeds on
larva of Stilbus oblongus feeds on Typha latifolia

Plant / resting place / on
fruitbody of Tomentella ellisii may be found on dead, decayed debris of Typha latifolia
Other: unusual host/prey

Foodplant / saprobe
fruitbody of Typhula capitata is saprobic on dead, decayed leaf of Typha latifolia

Known Pests: ARZAMA OPBLIQUA, NONAGRIA OBLONGA, APHIDS AND COLANDRA PERTINAUX

More info for the term: fuel

Fire and postfire flooding have been used to reduce broadleaf cattail abundance. Several challenges commonly occur when burning wetland habitats. Fuel loads are often high, and fires may burn "hotter" and "faster" than upland vegetation. Construction of fire breaks and maneuverability may also pose challenges in wetlands habitats [179]. Smoke produced in burning wetlands has been compared to the thick, black smoke produced when burning tires (Meyer, personal communication in [179]).

In the Carlos Avery Wildlife Management Area, managers used fire to maintain open water in dense cattail stands. Water levels were drawn down, and cattail vegetation was burned in the summer. Sites were flooded for several weeks, and cattail was typically removed for at least 2 years (Rhode, personal communication in [179]). Beule [16] reported that spring fires, ignited on a sunny day in drained marshes following a winter with very little moisture, are most likely to produce cattail mortality. Winds directing smoke away from populated areas are important when burning cattail wetlands [16].

Prescribed fires and postfire flooding were used to decrease cattail abundance in marshes of the St Clair National Wildlife Area of southwestern Ontario. Marshes were dominated by the broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail hybrid, although both parent species were present as well. The researcher indicated that winter fires were likely less "intense" than summer fires in drained marshes and likely easier to control. Submergence of postfire stubble was necessary to produce cattail mortality. Backfires left the shortest stubble (7 inches (18 cm)), and water levels were not raised much to kill the plants. Stubble may be taller if snow builds up on the ice before burning, and deeper flooding may be required to kill cattails. Later season burning may reduce this problem. The researcher noted that burning in successive years was not feasible because regrowth did not provide enough fuel to carry fire [9]. See the Research Project Summary of Ball's [9] study for a more detailed description of this study and its findings.

More info for the terms: cover, density, fire severity, fuel, fuel moisture, importance value, litter, marsh, prescribed fire, severity, succession, swamp

Studies on the postfire regeneration and recovery of broadleaf cattail are limited.
After severe fires in established stands, broadleaf cattail abundance rarely decreases.
However, postfire hydrology, depth of burn, and prefire moisture conditions can
affect regeneration. Flooded conditions after fire
can cause broadleaf cattail mortality [179,182]. A summer fire
on a drained marsh significantly reduced broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail cover, density, and height
(P<0.05) from that of an unburned control. Burned and unburned sites
were compared 3 years after fire [138].

Severe and/or dry-season fires:
Numerous fire studies in broadleaf cattail habitats described the fires as
severe, but rarely was broadleaf cattail abundance lower on burned than unburned
sites in early postfire years. Broadleaf cattail occurred in severely burned
marsh meadows in the Oregon Coast Range. Sites burned at least 11 years earlier.
Broadleaf cattail was absent from adjacent mature western hemlock (Tsuga
heterophylla)-Douglas-fir forests (about 300 years old) [163]. Burned
and unburned wetlands in Mono Lake Tufa State Reserve, California, were
only visibly different in litter abundance 1 year after a fall prescribed fire.
Strip fires burned in the fall when wind speeds were low. Fires produced
near-black smoke and flame lengths of up to 10 feet (3 m) and were described as
"high intensity". In the following April, broadleaf cattail was nearly 1.6 feet
(0.5 m) tall on burned sites, and burned sites were green before unburned sites
[11]. After the September Red Bench Fire that burned wet sedge meadows in Glacier
National Park, broadleaf cattail had 0.5% cover in the 2nd postfire year but was
not reported in the 1st or 3rd postfire years. The fire burned when conditions
were extremely dry and often burned to mineral soil. Prefire data were not
given, but unburned meadows were dominated by beaked sedge (Carex rostrata)
with near exclusion of other species [231]. After severe fires in smooth
cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) and sawgrass (Cladium jamaicensis)
swamps of southeastern Texas, cattail increased in the understory. After another
severe winter fire 2 years later, when conditions were dry, cattail increased
even more [124].
© 2005 Ross Orr.
Fall prescribed fire in a cattail
marsh in Washtenaw County, Michigan
Invasion after fire:
Broadleaf cattail appeared after severe fire or fires during dry conditions in baldcypress and pondcypress
habitats. Two sites in pondcypress domes near Gainesville, Florida, were severely burned in December.
Broadleaf cattail occurred only on burned sites and was not present before the fires.
Broadleaf cattail was very rare in undisturbed pondcypress domes. In the 1st postfire
year, broadleaf cattail cover was 10% to 12%. Cover was
greatest, 30% to 38%, in the 2nd postfire year. By the 5th postfire year, cover of
broadleaf cattail was reduced to less than 5% in the domes [54]. In pondcypress swamps of southern
Florida's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, burned, logged, and logged and burned sites were compared.
Logging occurred about 25 years earlier, and burning occurred in June, 7 to 8
years earlier in an excessively dry year. Broadleaf cattail was absent from logged sites,
but average importance values ranged from 2 to 8.5 on logged and burned sites. On
only burned sites, broadleaf cattail's importance value averaged 2.2. On burned and burned
and logged sites, pondcypress was absent and coastal plain willow (Salix caroliniana) dominated the canopy
[84]. Broadleaf cattail did not occur in
baldcypress-dominated woodlands of the Pocomoke River Swamp on
Maryland's eastern shore, but after a fire, broadleaf cattail
clumps and monocultures appeared on shallow sites. Researchers considered
broadleaf cattail a pioneer "fire weed" in postfire hydrarch succession
[15]. Fire severity, fire season, and time since fire were not reported.
Broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail:
On the Hog Lake impoundment of the Tintamarre Marsh northeast of Sackville, New
Brunswick, summer prescribed burning in drained areas significantly reduced
broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail cover, density, and height, but summer burning in flooded areas increased cover
significantly from unburned reference areas (P<0.05). Spring, summer, and fall fires occurred in
flooded and drained areas of the marsh. Broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail cover,
density, and height were compared 3 years after fire. In most spring and fall
burn treatments, burned and unburned sites were rarely different, except
broadleaf cattail height was significantly greater on spring-burned
flooded marsh than on unburned flooded marsh (P<0.05) [138].
Average cover, density, and height
of broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail on drained and flooded, unburned and burned sites 3 years after fires [138]Drained marsh UnburnedSpring burnedSummer burnedFall burnedCover (%)56a54a36b48aDensity (stems/m²)15a14a9b12abHeight (cm)133ab126b111c130aFlooded marshCover (%)41a44ab55b46abDensity (stems/m²)10a10a12a10aHeight (cm)155a165b158ab156aValues with different
letters within the same row are significantly different (P<0.05).
Postfire flooding/grazing:
While most studies indicate that broadleaf cattail is highly tolerant of fire,
increasing depths of postfire flooding often produce increased broadleaf cattail
mortality. Preferential
grazing on burned sites may also decrease broadleaf cattail abundance. In the Howard Slough
of Utah, a prescribed fire burned most broadleaf cattail stems to the ground. Fire season and severity were not
reported. The slough was flooded with 1 to 18 inches (2.5-46 cm) of water
immediately after the fire. Broadleaf cattail growth was "heavy" on
intermittently flooded and shallow-water
sites (<8 inches (20 cm) "soon" after the fire, but it was
absent from deep-water sites (8-18 inches (20-46 cm)) [164].
In Lacreek National Wildlife Refuge in southwestern South Dakota, cattail cover
(narrow-leaved and broadleaf) was about double on unburned than on burned sites flooded with
4 to 12 inches (10-30 cm) of water after fire (P<0.05). Prescribed
fires burned 2 sites in the fall and 2 sites in the spring. Cattail cover was similar
on 1-year-old burned sites, regardless of burn season (P>0.05). Sites were
without standing water by summer. Fires burned when fuel moisture was 41% to 253%, soil moisture was 36.5%
to 123%, temperatures were 66 to 79 °F (19-26 °C), and relative
humidity levels were 30% to 37%. Fires removed almost all aboveground
fuels but did not consume any organic soil.
Postfire herbivory was not different between protected and unprotected sites,
indicating that grazers did not preferentially feed on burned sites [182].
Average annual production of broadleaf cattail was much lower on burned and
grazed than undisturbed sites 1 year after treatments in the Ogden Bay Waterfowl Management Area freshwater marsh
in Utah. Waterfowl and common muskrats preferentially grazed burned sites.
Drawdown began in April, and prescribed fires burned in
early September. Windspeed averaged 10.3 miles (16.6 km)/h, dew point averaged
41 °F (5 °C), and the maximum daily temperature was 83 °F (28.5 °C) during the
fire. Sites were flooded 1 week after burning. Broadleaf cattail regenerated
entirely through sprouting; there were no seedlings on burned sites. Burned and
burned and grazed sites had lower broadleaf cattail production than unburned and
ungrazed sites [193].
Production of broadleaf cattail
on control, burned, and grazed freshwater marsh in Utah
[193] Burned and grazedBurnedGrazedControl (UB/UG)Average annual broadleaf cattail production (g/m²/yr)521±486¹1,173±1,1611,614±4372,532±948¹Standard deviation.

More info for the terms: frequency, litter, peat, rhizome

When established broadleaf cattail stands burn, plants sprout from the rhizome almost immediately after fire [11,193]. Even severely burned sites may differ from unburned sites in litter amounts as early as 1 year after fire [11].

Seedling establishment occurs on burned sites [63], but the seed source is unclear. In several fire studies, broadleaf cattail plants were not present before the fire but appeared soon after the fire on burned sites. Whether or not burned site colonization was primarily from dispersed seed, a persistent seed bank, or both sources is uncertain. Numerous studies without prefire or unburned comparisons make regeneration inferences difficult. Also see Seed banking and Seed dispersal.

Postfire seedling establishment: Controlled studies suggest that recently burned sites provide good broadleaf cattail germination habitat. Broadleaf cattail seed collected in central Alberta germinated best in light (P<0.01), and germination increased when seeds kept in the dark were watered with a mixture of broadleaf cattail ash and distilled water. Total seedling length also increased with ash treatments in the light and dark. Researchers indicated that high light and ash levels on burned sites may promote broadleaf cattail germination [178]. After a summer fire on peatlands of Dane County, Wisconsin, the frequency of mature broadleaf cattail plants and seedlings was 16% to 96% on 1-year-old burned sites. The fire burned to an average depth of 1 foot (0.3 m) into the peat layer. Frequency of seedlings was greatest near a ditch with an established broadleaf cattail population [63].

More info for the terms: marsh, peat

Mortality may occur when severe fires burn in drained marshes [138]. Fires that burn deep into the peat layer of a dry marsh may also cause cattail mortality [16].

Fire typically only top-kills broadleaf cattail [164].

More info for the terms: ground residual colonizer, initial off-site colonizer, rhizome, secondary colonizer

POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY [199]:
Rhizomatous herb, rhizome in soil
Ground residual colonizer (on site, initial community)
Initial off-site colonizer (off site, initial community)
Secondary colonizer (on-site or off-site seed sources)

More info for the terms: fire frequency, fire management, fire regime, fire-free interval, frequency, fuel, ground fire, hardwood, litter, low-severity fire, marsh, natural, prescribed fire

Fire adaptations: After fires in established broadleaf cattail stands, broadleaf cattail typically sprouts from rhizomes. Within 1 year of the fire, burned and unburned sites may only be different in litter accumulations [11]. Broadleaf cattail may also occur on burned forested and woodland sites within 1 year of a fire, even though plants were not present before the fire [54]. These findings suggest that broadleaf cattail germinates from a persistent seed bank or is rapidly dispersed to burned sites. FIRE REGIMES: Broadleaf cattail is restricted to moist or wet sites; however, some indicate that these habitats can burn frequently [40,65]. Fires are not considered frequent in all broadleaf cattail habitats, though. In alluvial communities of the southeastern Coastal Plain, broadleaf cattail occurs at the edge of oxbow lakes, where fire is not common [29]. It is likely that FIRE REGIMES in broadleaf cattail marshes and stands are dictated by surrounding upland vegetation. If nearby vegetation is highly flammable and conditions are dry, fire is likely in broadleaf cattail vegetation [65].

Fuels: Fires are not uncommon in broadleaf cattail habitats, and often fuel loads are more than adequate for fire spread. Robertson [179] reported that the fuel load/unit area in wetlands can be higher than that of uplands in the upper Midwest. Wetland fires may burn "hotter" and, given proper conditions, "faster" than upland sites. Fires in cattail marshes produce thick, black smoke, similar to that produced when tires burn (Rhode, personal communication in [179]). © 2005 Louis M Landry, photo taken in Lac Boivin, Granby, Quebec

Pre- and early-settlement fires: Several studies report that Native people as well as early trappers and settlers burned wetland vegetation to improve travel, hunting success, and food availability. In northern Alberta, Native people concentrated burning in wetlands (Lewis, personal communication in [206]). The Kumeyaay of southern California reportedly burned cattail marshes at 3-year intervals (Shipeck as cited in [11]). In south-central Manitoba, delta marshes were intentionally burned by early trappers to improve travel, expose common muskrat lodges and coyote, fox, and American mink dens, and concentrate wildlife into unburned areas. Early settlers often burned Manitoba meadows to improve forage quality. Meadow fires often escaped and burned adjacent marshes. Burning often occurred in the first warm days of spring [219]. For more on the use of broadleaf cattail by Native people and early settlers, see Other Uses.

Fires in presettlement time were frequent in several broadleaf cattail habitats across its range. In the Central Valley of California, freshwater marsh vegetation grows linearly and was likely important to north-south fire spread during dry conditions. Freshwater marsh vegetation is very productive and provides abundant fuel [232]. In the Driftless Area peatlands of Tempealeau County, Wisconsin, where broadleaf cattail is a common emergent, pollen records indicate that fire frequency was high before European settlement [40]. Frost [65] suggests that marshes in North Carolina's Croatan National Forest burned "frequently" in fires originating in flammable adjacent upland vegetation. Likely the fire frequency would have been similar to that of surrounding mixed-pine (Pinus spp.) and pond pine (P. serotina) communities, which typically burned every 1 to 3 years in presettlement times.

Spontaneous combustion: A report of spontaneous combustion was reported in marshlands along the shore of Lake Pontchartrain near Mandeville, Louisiana. Witnesses watched a fire "apparently ignited spontaneously" on 4 August 1924 in a time of "unprecedented drought". Water levels were several feet below the soil surface, and temperatures in neighboring towns were 100 to 104 °F (38-40 °C). Additional investigations in the area revealed that at least 100 separate fires were burning along an 18-mile stretch of marsh and pine vegetation. Other possible ignition sources were ruled out because of accessibility and timing. Weather reports indicated that heating and ignition conditions necessary for spontaneous agricultural fires occurred that day near Lake Pontchartrain. Other naturalists in the area suggested that ignition may have come from a creeping ground fire [215].

Changes in fire frequency: Fire exclusion has likely decreased fire frequency in broadleaf cattail habitats. On the North Fork of the Flathead River drainage, Montana, wet sedge meadows, where broadleaf cattail occurs on newly-disturbed sites, did not burn from 1926 to 1988. Researchers indicated that this was the longest fire-free interval since 1600 [231].

Prescribed fire practices may also reduce fire frequency in broadleaf cattail vegetation from what likely occurred in presettlement times. Fire lines used to control wildfires and prescribed fires are often constructed in the upland-wetland transition areas, where broadleaf cattail is common. Prior to active fire management, fires may have burned through the wetlands [64].

Communities listed below are those where broadleaf cattail has the greatest potential as a persistent species. Since FIRE REGIMES typical of broadleaf cattail stands are likely related to FIRE REGIMES in adjacent upland communities, also see the complete FEIS Fire Regime Table.

Fire regime information on vegetation communities in which broadleaf cattail may occur. For each community, fire regime characteristics are taken from the LANDFIRE Rapid Assessment Vegetation Models [121]. These vegetation models were developed by local experts using available literature, local data, and/or expert opinion as documented in the PDF file linked from the name of each Potential Natural Vegetation Group listed below. Cells are blank where information is not available in the Rapid Assessment Vegetation Model. Pacific Northwest California Southwest Great Basin Northern Rockies Northern Great Plains Great Lakes Northeast South-central US Southern Appalachians Southeast         Pacific Northwest

• Northwest Grassland

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) Northwest Grassland Marsh Replacement 74% 7     Mixed 26% 20     California

• California Grassland

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) California Grassland Herbaceous wetland Replacement 70% 15     Mixed 30% 35     Wet mountain meadow-Lodgepole pine (subalpine) Replacement 21% 100     Mixed 10% 200     Surface or low 69% 30     Southwest

• Southwest Forested

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) Southwest Forested Riparian forest with conifers Replacement 100% 435 300 550 Riparian deciduous woodland Replacement 50% 110 15 200 Mixed 20% 275 25   Surface or low 30% 180 10   Great Basin

• Great Basin Grassland
• Great Basin Forested

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) Great Basin Grassland Mountain meadow (mesic to dry) Replacement 66% 31 15 45 Mixed 34% 59 30 90 Great Basin Forested Stable aspen-cottonwood, no conifers Replacement 31% 96 50 300 Surface or low 69% 44 20 60 Stable aspen without conifers Replacement 81% 150 50 300 Surface or low 19% 650 600 >1,000 Northern Rockies

• Northern Rockies Shrubland

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) Northern Rockies Shrubland Riparian (Wyoming) Mixed 100% 100 25 500 Northern Great Plains

• Northern Plains Woodland

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) Northern Plains Woodland Northern Great Plains wooded draws and ravines Replacement 38% 45 30 100 Mixed 18% 94     Surface or low 43% 40 10   Great Plains floodplain Replacement 100% 500     Great Lakes

• Great Lakes Forested

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) Great Lakes Forested Great Lakes floodplain forest Mixed 7% 833     Surface or low 93% 61     Northeast

• Northeast Grassland

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) Northeast Grassland Northern coastal marsh Replacement 97% 7 2 50 Mixed 3% 265 20   South-central US

• South-central US Forested

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) South-central US Forested Southern floodplain Replacement 42% 140     Surface or low 58% 100     Southern Appalachians

• Southern Appalachians Forested

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) Southern Appalachians Forested Bottomland hardwood forest Replacement 25% 435 200 >1,000 Mixed 24% 455 150 500 Surface or low 51% 210 50 250 Mixed mesophytic hardwood Replacement 11% 665     Mixed 10% 715     Surface or low 79% 90     Southeast

• Southeast Grassland
• Southeast Shrubland
• Southeast Woodland
• Southeast Forested

Vegetation Community (Potential Natural Vegetation Group) Fire severity* Fire regime characteristics Percent of fires Mean interval
(years) Minimum interval
(years) Maximum interval
(years) Southeast Grassland Everglades sawgrass Replacement 96% 3 2 15 Surface or low 4% 70     Floodplain marsh Replacement 100% 4 3 30 Everglades (marl prairie) Replacement 45% 16 10 20 Mixed 55% 13 10   Pond cypress savanna Replacement 17% 120     Mixed 27% 75     Surface or low 57% 35     Southern tidal brackish to freshwater marsh Replacement 100% 5     Gulf Coast wet pine savanna Replacement 2% 165 10 500 Mixed 1% 500     Surface or low 98% 3 1 10 Southeast Shrubland Pocosin Replacement 1% >1,000 30 >1,000 Mixed 99% 12 3 20 Southeast Woodland Atlantic wet pine savanna Replacement 4% 100     Mixed 2% 175     Surface or low 94% 4      Southeast Forested Maritime forest Replacement 18% 40   500 Mixed 2% 310 100 500 Surface or low 80% 9 3 50 Southern floodplain Replacement 7% 900     Surface or low 93% 63     *Fire Severities
Replacement: Any fire that causes greater than 75% top removal of a vegetation-fuel type, resulting in general replacement of existing vegetation; may or may not cause a lethal effect on the plants.
Mixed: Any fire burning more than 5% of an area that does not qualify as a replacement, surface, or low-severity fire; includes mosaic and other fires that are intermediate in effects.
Surface or low: Any fire that causes less than 25% upper layer replacement and/or removal in a vegetation-fuel class but burns 5% or more of the area [88,120].

More info on this topic.

More info for the terms: bog, density, eruption, frequency, marsh, presence, ramet, rhizome, succession

In open wetland and aquatic communities, broadleaf cattail is considered an early- to late-seral species [76]. However, in moist to wet forest or woodland communities, broadleaf cattail growth is restricted to early-seral sites that follow canopy-opening disturbances [22,54,78]. Broadleaf cattail's persistent seed bank allows for rapid colonization of disturbed sites, which partially explains why broadleaf cattail is considered an invasive or weedy species by some [76,211,228].

General descriptions: Most often, broadleaf cattail is described in early-seral communities. It is considered an early-seral species in bogs of Michigan [216]. It is a dominant emergent in early successional stages in low- and high-nutrient sites in oxbow lakes along the Athabasca River in Alberta [132]. The broadleaf cattail type is described as an "early successional wetland community" at low-elevation sites of southeastern Idaho and Utah [169]. In northwestern Montana, broadleaf cattail is described as a "pioneer species that tends to form a relatively stable type" [18].

Shade tolerance: Broadleaf cattail is shade intolerant [116], and full light conditions are most conducive to seed germination [19,191]. A review reported that shade levels of 40%, 60%, and 90% reduced broadleaf cattail growth by 60%, 80%, and 90%, respectively, when compared to full sun. Broadleaf cattail often died after 30 months in 90% shade [102]. Broadleaf cattail seedling height was lower in 33% full sun than in full sun conditions when grown from seed collected from North Bay Park in Michigan. After 84 days in the greenhouse, seedlings averaged a little over 24 inches (60 cm) under shade cloth and a little over 33 inches (85 cm) in full sun [224].

Primary succession: Broadleaf cattail appears early in the primary succession of open water and newly-deposited substrates resulting from avalanche and volcanic flows.

Hydrarch succession is the process by which shallow water species succeed and eventually replace deep water forms [226]. In open water succession, broadleaf cattail is typically present in the emergent vegetation stage following stages dominated by submerged leaf and floating leaf species. The submerged and floating leaf stages of hydrarch succession in floodplains, deltas, and oxbow lakes of Alberta are typically dominated by pondweed (Potamogeton spp.) and pond-lily (Nuphar spp.), respectively. Broadleaf cattail is common in the next stage. Eventually sites succeed to sedge meadows that are eventually colonized by cottonwoods (Populus spp.) and willows (Salix spp.) (Raup, cited in [159]),[130,214]. Very similar succession is described on Steeny Kill Lake in New Jersey [168], swamps of northwestern Minnesota [55], peatlands of Dane County, Wisconsin [63], and in Gulf Coast marshes of Louisiana and Texas [136], although important species within the submerged, floating leaf, and emergent stages are often different. Time frames for successional turnover were not discussed.

Debris flow succession: New substrates resulting from volcanic and avalanche debris flows may be colonized by broadleaf cattail as early as 1 year after deposition. On mud flows created from a slurry of rock, sand, mud, and organic material that melted with the Mount St Helens eruption, broadleaf cattail was present within 1 year of eruption [87]. Broadleaf cattail wetlands were also found on new pumice substrates north of the Mount St Helens crater 14 years after eruption [208]. On debris avalanche deposits along the North Fork Toutle River Valley caused by the same eruption, broadleaf cattail frequency was 5% three years after the eruption. Nine years after eruption, frequency had increased to19%. Twenty years after eruption, frequency had decreased to 2% [38].

Secondary succession: Broadleaf cattail rapidly colonizes moist to wet disturbed sites. Often broadleaf cattail is absent before disturbances but appears soon after canopy opening. Broadleaf cattail's persistent seed bank is likely important in the rapid colonization of disturbed sites.

General: In West Virginia wetland communities, broadleaf cattail was often associated with recent disturbance [59]. In bogs of northern lower Michigan, reed (Phragmites spp.)-cattail vegetation is common on sites "greatly disturbed" by fire or trampling. In Smith's Bog, broadleaf cattail was abundant in disturbed agricultural areas, but after farms were abandoned, broadleaf cattail dominance decreased [68]. Along the Saugus River in Wakefield, Massachusetts, the density and composition of disturbed broadleaf cattail marshes were not different from undisturbed marshes 1 year after power line construction (P>0.05) [167]. Broadleaf cattail colonized newly-deposited sand on Minnesota Point in Lake Superior within 1 year of dredging. Seedlings appeared 1 year after dredging, and in the next growing season, there were 9 broadleaf cattail seedlings/10 m² at a 10-foot (3 m) distance from the bay shore. Four years after dredging, the sand fill was dominated by a dense willow thicket and broadleaf cattail marsh [119].

Broadleaf cattail densities and population dynamics were compared in developing and maturing seral communities in Lawrence Lake area of Barry County, Michigan. Broadleaf cattail density was 10.4 ramets/m² in open marshes dominated by short-statured vegetation exposed to full sun and wind conditions. Density was greater, 21 ramets/m², in monotypic broadleaf cattail stands sheltered from wind. In adjacent woodlands dominated by red-osier dogwood (Cornus sericea subsp. sericea) and willows, broadleaf cattail density was much lower, 4.8 ramets/m². Broadleaf cattail growing-season mortality was lowest in open marsh and greatest in woodland communities. Researchers indicated that woodland ramet mortality was likely due to decreased light availability. In open marsh habitats, overwinter mortality was 2.5 to 4 times greater than in monotypic cattail stands and woodlands, respectively. Lack of protection from weather likely caused this discrepancy in overwinter mortality. Broadleaf cattail's presence in woodland communities was maintained by vegetative reproduction from the broadleaf cattail marsh [78].

Logging: In the Clay Belt of northeastern Ontario and western Quebec, broadleaf cattail occurred in ruts created by logging equipment in wetland black spruce (Picea mariana) stands. Forests were logged an average of 9.3 years before the study. Sites were mesotrophic, high in pH and nitrogen, and dominated by speckled alder (Alnus incana subsp. rugosa) and cottonwood [22].

Fire: Broadleaf cattail occurred in burned baldcypress (Taxodium distichum var. distichum)-dominated Pocomoke River Swamps on the eastern shore of Maryland. Broadleaf cattail clumps and monotypic stands occurred on shallow burned sites. Researchers noted that broadleaf cattail is a pioneer "fire weed" in postfire hydrarch succession [15]. Time since fire was not reported. Similar findings of broadleaf cattail in early postfire communities are presented in Fire Effects.

Grazing/trampling: Broadleaf cattail abundance can be reduced by common muskrat and livestock grazing. Common muskrats feed extensively on broadleaf cattail roots and rhizomes. Common muskrat populations can affect successional development and productivity in broadleaf cattail stands [37]. In a wetland north of Cambridge, Maryland, a researcher observed heavy broadleaf cattail feeding by common muskrats. Twelve years after heavy use, the broadleaf cattail marsh was converted to green arrow arum (Peltandra virginica)-dominated vegetation. Extensive common muskrat feeding converted solid broadleaf cattail rhizome mats to unconsolidated, anoxic, organic substrates, and water levels were lowered by 2 to 6 inches (5-15 cm) [66]. Additional information is available in Common muskrats.

Although broadleaf cattail is not considered particularly palatable to livestock, it may be consumed when water levels drop and/or other upland forage is unavailable. Grazing and trampling can reduce broadleaf cattail abundance. In northwestern Montana, heavy livestock use may convert broadleaf cattail communities to a Nebraska sedge (Carex nebrascensis) type [18]. In wetlands of southeastern Alberta, heavy cattle grazing and trampling killed nearly all broadleaf cattail seedlings on exposed mud. Trampling did not affect established stands. The researcher concluded that "broadleaf cattail as an established emergent is little affected by cattle, but as a moist soil stand it is often badly trampled" [111].

More info for the terms: achene, cover, density, eruption, frequency, litter, marsh, monoecious, natural, presence, ramet, rhizome, series

Broadleaf cattail regenerates vegetatively through rhizome sprouts and sexually through seed germination [189].

Pollination: Female broadleaf cattail flowers mature before male flowers, making cross pollination possible or even likely [10,82].

Breeding system: Broadleaf cattail is monoecious [5,72]. Heterozygosity and polymorphism levels suggest extremely low genetic variation in broadleaf cattail stands, but genetic differentiation exists between stands; ramets within a site are more similar than those between sites. Researchers indicate that self pollination and clonal growth have increased the genetic homogeneity of stands while increasing genetic differences between sites. Increased genetic diversity of broadleaf cattail occurred at the most polluted sites along a transect from Louisville, Kentucky, to Circleville, Ohio. Researchers were not sure that pollution levels caused the genetic differences [109].

Seed production: When broadleaf cattail flowers, abundant seed production is possible. A review reports that typically more than half of pollinated flowers set seed [102]. In controlled conditions, broadleaf cattail grown from seed produced flowers early in the second year of growth. From 10 spikes that averaged 7 inches (18 cm) long, an average of over 222,000 seeds/spike was produced [238].

Many studies report poor flower production by broadleaf cattail. Sexual reproduction was rare in broadleaf cattail vegetation on the west side of Lawrence Lake in south-central Barry County, Michigan. Of 1,779 marked shoots studied over 3 years, only 3 flowered [45]. Degree of shading or depth of submergence may affect flowering. In broadleaf cattail monocultures in experimental ponds at the University of Arkansas, broadleaf cattail flowered only when roots were not submerged. Researchers suggested that self shading in dense stands may inhibit flowering [75]. In a manmade pond at Michigan's W. K. Kellogg Biological Station, the percentage of broadleaf cattail flowering in a single year in September varied with water level. Unsubmerged plants did not flower. When submerged under 6 inches (15 cm) of water, 33% flowered, and in 20 inches (50 cm) of water, 11% flowered [80]. Perhaps a water level influence on flowering is related to the nonflooded or barely flooded conditions necessary for successful seed germination. For additional information on this topic, see Germination.

Seed dispersal: Broadleaf cattail seeds are transported by wind, water, and substrate movement. Achenes have numerous long slender hairs at the base that allow fruits to float on water and blow in the wind [172], and some report that achenes split or burst when they contact water [92,98]. Broadleaf cattail produces abundant seeds [58]. A review describes the release of broadleaf cattail fruits from the spike. When fruits are dry, protective portions of the pistil shrivel and hairs on the achene spread. Spreading hairs produce pressure that bursts inflorescences and releases fruits into the air [102]. Wind dispersal distances of broadleaf cattail seeds collected in Hockessin, Delaware, were calculated from timed descents made indoors. Seed mass averaged 0.05 mg. Seeds fell at 0.13 m/s, and the estimated lateral distance traveled in a 10 km/h wind was 154 feet (46.9 m) [144].

Seeds are also dispersed through soil movement when mud clings to animals or people [47]. Seeds may also be transported with portions of broadleaf cattail clones that are torn by wind, water, ice, or animals [6]. Often seeds remain attached to spikes through the winter and are dispersed in the spring, and in some cases seeds fail to disperse. Apfelbaum [6] observed submerged cattail spikes with hundreds of nearby seedlings.

Seed banking: Broadleaf cattail produces a persistent seed bank. Although there are no reports of how long broadleaf cattail seed remains viable in the soil, its emergence from soils in late-seral forests that have long been unsuitable broadleaf cattail habitat suggests long-term persistence or long-distance dispersal. In Washington, a small percentage of field-collected broadleaf cattail seed germinated after being stored in a freshwater canal for 60 months [33]. While dense broadleaf cattail seedlings often emerged from sites where broadleaf cattail was important [126,210], there were exceptions [48,210]. Most of the studies below used the emergence method to determine the density of broadleaf cattail seed in the soil. This method requires, but rarely assures, that ideal broadleaf cattail germination conditions are provided.

Depth, season, and vegetation type: Broadleaf cattail emergence from soil collected in the Hamilton Marshes of New Jersey's Delaware River wetlands varied with season of collection, depth of burial, and vegetation type. Through field experiments, researchers determined that more than half of broadleaf cattail emergents came from persistent seed banks and not recent seed rain. The greatest number of broadleaf cattail seedlings (15,060/m²) emerged from the top 0.8 inch (2 cm) of soil collected in March from vegetation dominated by calamus (Acorus calamus) and broadleaf cattail. Soils collected in June from the same depth and vegetation type had 2,340/m² broadleaf cattail seedlings emerge. There were 5,060/m² and 2,150/m² broadleaf cattail seedlings in the top 0.8 inch of soils collected in March and June, respectively, in shrublands dominated by red maple (Acer rubrum), silky dogwood (Cornus amomum), and alder (Alnus spp.). Broadleaf cattail seedling emergence decreased with increasing soil depths, and no seedlings emerged from soil samples taken from depths greater than 5.9 inches (15 cm). More seedlings emerged on unprotected sites (53,000/m²) than on sites with seed rain excluded (38,700/m²). Although differences were not significant (P>0.05) [126], they suggest a persistent seed bank. For additional information on Leck and Simpson's [126] study, see Germination and Seedling establishment/growth.

High levels of seedlings or germinants are not always recovered from soils where broadleaf cattail is important. Few broadleaf cattails germinated from soils collected in eastern Tennessee mixed-deciduous forests. Soil samples collected in the spring from a site where broadleaf cattail frequency was 70% had 27±10 (SE) broadleaf cattail germinants. No seedlings germinated from summer-collected soils. From a site where broadleaf cattail frequency was 10%, there was only 1 germinant/m² from spring-collected soils [48].

Newly-colonized sites: Broadleaf cattail seed was recovered from new substrates resulting from the eruption of Mount St Helens. Seed banks develop soon after broadleaf cattail colonization [238]. In late September, soil samples were collected from newly-developed wetlands. No broadleaf cattail seedlings emerged from soil collected in wetlands where broadleaf cattail cover averaged 60%. In a wetland where broadleaf cattail cover averaged 90%, 126±145 (SD) seedlings/m² emerged from the top 2 inches (5 cm) of soil, and 1,088±1,609 seedlings/m² emerged from 2- to 4-inch (5-10 cm) depths. No broadleaf cattail seedlings emerged from soil samples that were not cold stratified. Researchers suspected that soil samples contained more broadleaf cattail seed than what emerged and that germination conditions were not ideal in the greenhouse [210].

Disturbed and late-seral forests: In south-central British Columbia, broadleaf cattail seeds emerged from undisturbed, 1-year-old "lightly burned", and 1-year-old clearcut Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) forests, although broadleaf cattail was not part of the existing vegetation. Broadleaf cattail seedlings emerged from soil samples collected from 5% of the quadrats in the undisturbed area, from 5% of lightly-burned quadrats, and from 2% of clearcut quadrats [195]. Few broadleaf cattail seedlings also emerged from the litter or top 0.8 inch (2 cm) of soil collected from 130- to 175-year-old mixed-conifer forests in eastern Oregon's Blue Mountains, although broadleaf cattail was not present in study plots or adjacent areas. Researchers suggested that broadleaf cattail seed survives in the soil until conditions are conducive to germination, allowing broadleaf cattail to rapidly occupy disturbed sites [202]. Low numbers of broadleaf cattail seedlings also emerged from soil collected in mature Douglas-fir and fir (Abies spp.) forests averaging 88 years or older in central Idaho [114].

Germination: Specific requirements necessary for broadleaf cattail germination are difficult to ascertain. Experimental studies indicate that light and warm temperatures are necessary for broadleaf cattail seed germination. However, studies involving flooding, leaf litter extract, and stratification effects on seed have produced conflicting results.

Broadleaf cattail seeds collected for 3 years from populations at 8,500 feet (2,600 m) elevation near Grand Lake, Colorado, failed to germinate. Researchers noted that broadleaf cattail had occupied the site for at least 12 years and that vegetative growth was vigorous [149]. Reasons for the variability in germination potential, requirements, and tolerances are unknown. Possibly broadleaf cattail seed viability is temporally, environmentally, ecotypically, and/or genotypically variable.

Cold stratification: As part of an extensive study of broadleaf cattail ecotypic population differences, McNaughton [147] found that broadleaf cattail seeds did not require a cold period before germinating, but the lowest temperature at which 50% germination occurred was lower in southern than northern populations. Broadleaf cattail seeds collected in soils from newly-developed wetlands on Mount St Helens only germinated in soils that were stratified (37 °F (3 °C)) for 12 weeks. No seedlings emerged in unstratified wetland soils [210].

Salinity: Choudhuri [27] found that broadleaf cattail germination percentages decreased with increasing salinity. No seeds germinated above 1 atm of osmotic pressure in natural salinity. For additional information on broadleaf cattail's tolerance of salt as a juvenile and adult plant, see Soil salinity.

Light, pH, temperature, oxygen, and ash: Broadleaf cattail seeds germinate best in warm temperatures and high light conditions [19,191,224]. Seeds germinate in acid, basic, or neutral pH conditions, and ash extracts have increased broadleaf cattail germination [178]. Reduced oxygen levels through the manipulation of gases in the air or through submersion have also increased broadleaf cattail germination success [191].

Broadleaf cattail seeds collected from North Bay Park on Ford Lake Reservoir shores in Washtenaw County, Michigan, germinated better in light than in dark conditions, better at 77 °F (25 °C) than at 68 °F (20 °C), and better when submerged than when exposed. Exposed seed germination, regardless of temperature or light exposure, ranged from 0.8% to 5%. Germination was best, 79.2%, when seeds were submerged, in the light, and kept at 77 °F (25 °C) [224].

Germination increased with increasing temperatures for broadleaf cattail seeds collected in May and October from Carlos Avery Wildlife Management Area, Minnesota. Maximum germination percentages occurred at the maximum temperature tested, 95 °F (35 °C). No seeds germinated at 50 °F (10 °C). Seeds exposed to cold temperatures before exposure to 95 °F (35 °C) temperatures had lower germination percentages than seeds kept at room temperature. Germination did not occur when seeds were exposed to low oxygen levels of 1.0 mg/L, and at least 10 hours of continuous red light was required for maximum germination. Researchers suggested that broadleaf cattail germination in the field would be most likely at the surface of saturated soils [19].

Optimum broadleaf cattail germination temperatures were 77 to 86 °F (25-30 °C), and seed crops responded differently to reduced and normal oxygen levels in studies conducted in Ontario. Germination rates were slower and percentages were reduced at 68 °F (20 °C) and 95 °F (35 °C). Seeds immersed in water germinated better than those kept moist. When moist seeds were exposed to reduced oxygen levels (2%), germination percentages equaled those of immersed seeds. Light exposure increased germination. The light intensity required for germination was low, but critical intensities varied with individual seeds. Seeds in full light had 99% germination. In containers wrapped with 3 layers of herbarium paper, germination was 97%, and when wrapped with tin foil, germination was 5%. Germination studies spanned many years, and differences were found among broadleaf cattail seed crops. Seeds collected in 4 of 7 years had increased germination in low oxygen environments, but 3 crops showed little to no apparent difference with oxygen levels changes [191].

Collection time affected the germination of broadleaf cattail seed collected in November and May in central Alberta. Less than 1% of fall-collected seeds germinated in light and distilled water, but 90% of seeds collected in May germinated. Germination in light (81-90%) was significantly higher than in the dark (15-73%, P<0.01). Germination in the dark increased when broadleaf cattail ash was added to distilled water. Germination was not affected by pH levels of 4, 7, or 12. Researchers suggested that high light levels and ash on burned sites may favor broadleaf cattail seed germination. Researchers also suggested that low humidity levels during seed storage may have affected viability [178], but spring collected seeds may have benefited from natural stratification.

Flooding: Many controlled experiments indicate that broadleaf cattail seeds germinate well in submerged or flooded conditions; however, field observations suggest regeneration from seed is restricted to nonflooded substrates [189]. Beule [16] indicated that field observations made in southeastern Wisconsin did not agree with laboratory reports of broadleaf seed germination in flooded conditions. Only once did Beule find broadleaf cattail seedlings in areas where germination may have occurred under shallow water. All other field observations suggested that germination was restricted to exposed substrates [16]. Differences between laboratory and field observations may relate to light requirements. The quality and murkiness of water in the field and water used in the laboratory were likely different, and associated vegetation cover in the field was not likely mimicked in laboratory studies.

Broadleaf cattail seeds collected near Huntley, Montana, germinated at very low percentages regardless of pH or temperature treatments. Only when seed coats were ruptured along the edge were high germination percentages achieved. Broadleaf cattail seeds with ruptured seed coats germinated under 30 inches (76 cm) of water and grew to the surface [238]. Broadleaf cattail germination percentages were greatest, about 43%, at 16 inches (40 cm) deep and lowest, approximately 16%, when unflooded at the Aquatic Environmental Research Facility in Lewisville, Texas. Germination percentages at 31-inch (80 cm) and 39-inch (100 cm) depths were about 25% [188].

Emergence of broadleaf cattail from reclaimed coal mine wetland soils in Perry County, Illinois, was better when samples were submerged in 0.8 inch (2 cm) of water than when kept moist [31]. Flooding soils collected from the Hamilton Marshes of New Jersey's Delaware River wetlands with 1.2 to 1.6 inches (3-4 cm) of water did not significantly affect broadleaf cattail germination (P>0.05). Researchers noted that broadleaf cattail emergence in the field was substantially less than in the greenhouse. Frequency of broadleaf cattail seedlings in the field ranged from 0 to 47% over a 2-year period in 2 vegetation types [126]. See Seed banking for more on seedling emergence results from Leck and Simpson's [126] study.

Nutrients and extracts: Some studies report differences in percent germination and germination rates when broadleaf cattail seeds are exposed to leaf litter extracts and nutrients. Germination rate increased but total percent germination was not different when seeds from the northern Florida Everglades were kept moist with Everglades water rather than distilled water. Everglades water with low, medium, and high levels of total phosphate was tested [198].

Germination was nearly a complete failure when seeds collected from broadleaf cattail marshes near Syracuse, New York, were kept moist with broadleaf cattail leaf extracts. In distilled water, broadleaf cattail germination was 90.8% after only 2 days. The researcher described the inhibition as "autotoxic feedback", a process by which seedling viability decreases with accumulations of toxic parent residues [148]. Germination of broadleaf cattail seeds from Washington County, Arkansas, was inhibited by 3% broadleaf cattail leaf extract concentrations, but inhibition was due to the development of water molds. There were no significant differences in germination of seeds planted in pots with (82%) or without (86%) adult broadleaf cattail (P>0.05). Light levels were high (81% full sun) and litter accumulations were low in the pots, which is not representative of a natural broadleaf cattail stand [74]. In natural broadleaf cattail marshes in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, light was less than 3% at the soil surface [23].

Broadleaf cattail hybrids: Increased sediments and flooding reduced broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail germination percentages. Germination of broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail seed collected from Larson Marsh in Story County, Iowa, decreased by 60% to 90% when 2 to 4 mm of sediment were added to the soil surface [218]. In the greenhouse, broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail and broadleaf cattail germination was 15% and 16%, respectively, in 16 inches (41 cm) of water. Germination was best in 1 inch (2.5 cm) of water, and germination percentages decreased with increasing water depths [225].

Seedling establishment/growth: Broadleaf cattail seedlings are extremely small when compared to seedlings of associated vegetation. Drawings of typical broadleaf cattail seedlings are provided by Leck and Simpson [125]. After germination, broadleaf cattail produces 2 to 4 small leaves and 2 to 6 floating leaves before producing erect leaves. Once shoots reach 14 to 18 inches (35-45 cm) tall, rhizome growth begins (Holm and others as cited in [155]). Flooding and sediments can affect seedling survivorship and growth.

Flooding: Some indicate that broadleaf cattail seedling establishment is most likely on nonflooded substrates [16,189]. However, Yeo [238] observed that nearly all broadleaf cattail seedlings in the field were submerged in early growth. At the Aquatic Environmental Research Facility in Lewisville, Texas, broadleaf cattail seedling biomass was measured 10 weeks after germination at 0- to 47-inch (120 cm) depths. Seedling biomass was greatest at 7.9 inches (20 cm) and least at 47 inches (120 cm). Unflooded conditions produced seedling biomass greater than flooding with 24 or more inches (>60 cm) [188].

Hybrid seedlings/growth: Broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail seedling survivorship was much lower in 1 cm of sediment than when no sediment was present, and younger seedlings were more sensitive to sedimentation than older (26-37 days) seedlings. Survival decreased when over half of the shoot was covered. Survivorship increased when older, larger seedlings received small amounts of sediment. Sediment loads of up to 1.6 inches (4 cm) did not affect adult plant densities [218].

Growth: Typical broadleaf cattail growth and development were summarized after 3 years of studies on the west side of Lawrence Lake in Michigan. There are 3 shoot emergence pulses/year; one occurs in the early spring, with spring shoots dying by late fall. In midsummer another pulse of growth occurs, and 70% to 80% of shoots die in the fall. The last growth pulse produces 80% to 90% of the shoots that will resume growth in spring [45]. The rhizome is the most long-lived broadleaf cattail structure; it survives up to 2 years (Westlake, cited in [45]). Broadleaf cattail growth and production can be affected by soil moisture regimes and associated species presence.

Broadleaf cattail biomass production and height growth were greatest for continuously flooded seedlings in a greenhouse experiment. Researchers collected broadleaf cattail seed in March from freshwater wetlands along the Mississippi River in Tennessee. Seedling biomass production and height growth were significantly lower in periodic drought conditions than in continuously flooded conditions (P<0.001) [131].

At the W. K. Kellogg Biological Station in Michigan, broadleaf cattail shoot density was 32% lower when growing with narrow-leaved cattail than when growing in a monoculture [81].

Vegetative regeneration: Rhizome growth is important to broadleaf cattail regeneration. Rhizome dispersal may occur when portions of a clone are separated by wind, water, ice, or animals [6]. Dispersal is also likely through tillage and substrate movement [47].

Broadleaf cattail is highly productive through clonal growth. Broadleaf cattail clones can occupy 58 m² two years after germination [77]. Holm and others [102] reported in a review that a single broadleaf cattail colony was 54 m² after 2 growing seasons and produced a total rhizome length of 1,600 feet (480 m). A plant grown from seed produced rhizomes that reached a diameter of 10 feet (3 m) in a single growing season [238]. Nearly monotypic broadleaf cattail stands are multiclonal [109]. Broadleaf cattail ramets typically die within a year. If the ramet flowered, it was very unlikely to live beyond 1 year. In undisturbed broadleaf cattail stands, ramets were not over 3 years old [78].

In many cases, vegetative regeneration predominates over sexual reproduction. Some indicate that seedlings rarely occur in established broadleaf cattail stands [78] and that rhizome production and growth are the primary methods for increasing stand size [44]. Researchers collected seed for 3 years from an established high-elevation broadleaf cattail stand near Grand Lake, Colorado. No seed germinated, but vegetative growth was described as vigorous [149]. A total of 1,765 broadleaf cattail shoots were monitored in the western marsh of Lawrence Lake in south-central Michigan over a 2-year period. There were no seedlings, and only 2 shoots flowered. Researchers summarized that "through vigorous vegetative growth", a dense, monotypic broadleaf cattail stand produced a "tightly packed advancing front of ramets" that successfully excluded other plants [44]. After a series of field experiments, researchers concluded that broadleaf cattail "is exploitive in its ability to clone rapidly and colonize available space, is able to capture light effectively because of its high allocation to leaves and high leaf surface area, and as a result has a low allocation to sexual reproduction" [79].

More info on this topic.

More info for the terms: geophyte, helophyte

RAUNKIAER [177] LIFE FORM:
Geophyte
Helophyte

More info for the term: graminoid

Graminoid

The structure of cattail stands as it is, with upright leaves, high leaf area, balanced horizontal and vertical distribution of leaf area and shifts in leaf angle are all factors which permit monoculture success. An open, generously sunny habitat and abundant moisture can provide the setting for maximum cattail production.

Typha plants are mined by caterpillars of the moths Arzama opbliqua and Nonagria oblonga (Klots 1966). Aphids and Colandra pertinaux (the snout beetle) also feed on Typha leaves and stems. The stems may have many species of pupa living within them (Klots 1966). The cattail rhizomes provide food to mammals such as the muskrat. The grazing of muskrats may greatly influence cattail communities. A cycling population of muskrats may reach such a density so as to totally set back a cattail stand for the season. These "eat outs" are important to maintain open water in a balanced system. Muskrats utilize leaves and stems for houses and eat the rhizomes (Zimmerman pers. comm.). Cattail fruits provide nesting material for terrestrial birds and dry stems may be used by aquatic birds.

Above ground portions die in the late fall and rhizomes overwinter. In Wisconsin, it was found that average winter marsh temperatures greater then 8 degrees C reduced carbohydrate reserves in Typha latifolia to an extent sufficient to inhibit shoot growth in the spring (Adriano et al. 1980). Cattail population success has been correlated with nutrient fertility (Boyd 1971), water level and substrate temperature (Adriano et al. 1980).

The plant tissues can store relatively high concentrations of some metals. Typha appears to have an internal copper and nickel tolerance mechanism. It is not likely that there is an evolutionary selection for heavy metal tolerance, but rather it is inherent in the species (Taylor and Crowder 1984).

More info on this topic.

Broadleaf cattail typically flowers from late spring and summer in the northern part of its range and from spring to early summer in the southern part of its range [58]. Broadleaf cattail ramets typically die after flowering [77]. When broadleaf cattail seeds collected from across the United States were grown in a common garden, plants from seed collected in northern populations flowered earlier than plants from seed from southern populations [147]. In the Midwest, cattails usually emerge by early April, flower from July to September, and senescence before late October. Seeds typically remain on the spikes through the winter and disperse in spring [6]. Broadleaf cattail growth begins in March and ends in July at Mitry Lake near Yuma, Arizona. Foliage begins to die in October, and plants are usually dry by December [145]. On Paynes Prairie Basin in Alachua County, Florida, broadleaf cattail flowered for about 3 weeks in May. Fruits were ripe in June and July; seeds dispersed from August to November. Plants began drying in June and were dormant from November to January [170].

Timing of broadleaf cattail reproductive development by state and region State/region Flowering and/or fruiting dates Baja California flowers June-July [230] California flowers June-July [161] Carolinas flowers May-July; fruits June-November [175] Florida flowers May-June in panhandle [30]; flowers spring-summer throughout Florida [235] Illinois flowers June-October [156] Kansas flowers June-July [10] Nevada flowers June-August [108]; flowers June-July in south-central Nevada [14] New Mexico flowers May-July [142] Texas flowers April-June [46] West Virginia flowers August-September [201] Atlantic Coast flowers April-July [51] Blue Ridge Province flowers May-July [233] Great Plains flowers late May-July [82]; flowers June and fruits July-September in northern Great Plains [122] Intermountain West flowers July-August for broadleaf cattail and broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail [36] New England flowers July 7-23 [187]

Flowering late spring--summer in north, spring--early summer in south.

Fl. Per.: June-August.

The following is a representative barcode sequence, the centroid of all available sequences for this species.

Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 19
Specimens with Barcodes: 20
Species With Barcodes: 1

Information on state-level protected status of plants in the United States is available at Plants Database.

Canada

Rounded National Status Rank: N5 - Secure

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N5 - Secure

Rounded Global Status Rank: G5 - Secure

Reasons: Wide distribution.

Common and widespread (3).

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s current status, such as, state noxious status and wetland indicator values.

Comments: Cattail management may be desired in situations where cattails have responded to wetland disturbance by growing in dense monocultures. The genus Typha can behave like aggressive introduced weeds in a variety of natural communities throughout North America (Apfelbaum 1985). Cattails are considered serious weeds in some countries (Holm et al. 1979, Morton 1975) but not necessarily in North America.

In high-quality natural communities, cattails usually occur as scattered sterile plants (Apfelbaum 1985). With disruptions to a community, cattail populations may respond by spreading vegetatively at a rapid rate. The effect of the growth spurt is closing open water, eliminating habitat and species diversity, and reducing the opportunity for other plants to become established and survive. Shading is a significant effect on other plants. Cattails are successful because they form extensive monocultures very rapidly through vegetative reproduction and maintain their dominance with the formation of dense rhizomes mats and litter.

Cattails have a wide ecological amplitude compared to other species (Pianka 1973). They are tolerant to habitat changes, pollutants in the water system, and saline or basic substrates. A study in Indiana concluded that the three basic events precede the growth of cattails monocultures: 1. modified surface hydrology, 2. wildfire suppression, and 3. wetland enrichment (Wilcox et al. 1984). Claims that hybrid cattails are responsible for monoculture growths have not been confirmed.

Not threatened at present.

More info for the terms: density, marsh, ramet

Nonnative species interactions: Purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) and reed mannagrass (Glyceria
maxima) are nonnative wetland species that may affect broadleaf cattail growth and
development. Several studies shown purple loosestrife can
alter site conditions and reduce broadleaf cattail germination and growth.
Additional information on purple loosestrife growth with broadleaf cattail or in
broadleaf cattail habitats is available from the following references: [57,85,127,223,224].
For a description of reed mannagrass invasions in broadleaf cattail-dominated
wetlands, see Wei and Chow-Fraser [222].
Broadleaf cattail and broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail invasions:
In some areas, broadleaf cattail has increased at the expense of other native species. In Harewood
Marsh of Jefferson County, West Virginia, hydrologic changes and increased
nutrient inputs may have facilitated broadleaf cattail increases, which may
threaten rare species' persistence [49]. Nutrient enrichment also likely
facilitated broadleaf cattail encroachment of sawgrass into the northern and central Everglades [35].
Urban runoff that increased nitrogen and phosphorus
inputs coincided with broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail increases in
Gardner Marsh in the University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum. Experiments
revealed that broadleaf cattail × narrow-leaved cattail aboveground
biomass, ramet density, and height were greater in fertilized than in control
plots [234].
Broadleaf cattail control:
Numerous studies and research address control of broadleaf cattail. Chemical control is
discussed in the following references: [141,157,164,197,213]. Physical,
mechanical, cultural, and biological control methods are available in these
sources: [16,69,128,141,164,197].

Conservation action is not needed for this common species. Plantlife has included the bulrush in its Common Plant Survey. This survey aims to determine the status of 65 common plant species in Britain, in order to understand how these species are faring in the countryside and to effectively monitor changes in their populations (7).

Local sources are recommended. This species should be available from any local nursery specializing in aquatic plants.

Heavy grazing will eliminate Typha species as well as other native species from riparian corridors. However, cattails are fairly resistant to moderate grazing, providing wet soils are not compacted.

Because cattails have relatively little value for ducks, they are often regarded as undesirable weeds in places intended primarily for ducks. It has been found that mowing cattails after the heads are well formed but not mature and then following up with another mowing about a month later, when new growth is two or three feet high, will kill at least 75% of the plants. This will enable other emergent vegetation with more palatable and nutritious seeds to become established.

Ecologically, cattails tend to invade native plant communities when hydrology, salinity, or fertility changes. In this case they out compete native species, often becoming monotypic stands of dense cattails. Maintaining water flows into the wetland, reducing nutrient input and maintaining salinity in tidal marshes will help maintain desirable species composition. If cattails begin to invade, physical removal may be necessary.

The preference is full sun, wet conditions, and soil that is muddy or sandy. This plant is an emergent aquatic that can tolerate standing water up to 1½' deep. It can tolerate drought if the soil remains moist. In more shady areas, fewer spikes of flowers are produced and individual plants may die out. In suitable habitat, Common Cattail spreads aggressively.

Ethnobotanic: All parts of the cattail are edible when gathered at the appropriate stage of growth. The young shoots are cut from the rhizomes (underground stems) in the spring when they are about 4 to 16 inches long. The raw young shoots taste like cucumber and can also be made into pickles. When the young shoots are steamed they taste like cabbage. The base of the stem where it attaches to the rhizome can be boiled or roasted like potatoes. The young flower stalks can be taken out of their sheaths and can be boiled or steamed just like corn (Roos-Collins 1990; Clarke 1977).

Cattail pollen is a fine substitute for flours. It is a bright yellow or green color, and turns pancakes, cookies or biscuits a pretty yellow color (which children love). The rhizomes (underground stems) and lower stems have a sweet flavor and can be eaten raw, baked, roasted, or broiled. Cattail rhizomes are fairly high in starch content; this is usually listed at about 30% to 46%. The core can be ground into flour. One acre of cattails would yield about 6,475 pounds of flour (Harrington 1972). This flour would probably contain about 80 % carbohydrates and around 6% to 8% protein. Since cattail occurs around the world, it is a potential source of food for the worlds' population.

Newly emerging shoots of cattails are edible, with delicate flavor and crispy asparagus like texture (Glenn Keator, Linda Yamane, Ann Lewis 1995). The end of a new stem of cattail is popular for eating with Washoes (Murphy 1959). When mixed with tallow, the brown fuzz can be chewed like gum.

The Klamath and Modocs of northern California and southern Oregon make flexible baskets of twined tule or cattail. Cattails or tules were also twined to form mats of varying sizes for sleeping, sitting, working, entertaining, covering doorways, for shade, and a myriad of other uses.

The Cahuilla Indians used the stalks for matting, bedding material, and ceremonial bundles (Barrows 1967). Some tribes used the leaves and sheath bases as caulking materials. Apaches used the pollen in female puberty ceremonies. After dipping the spike in coal oil, the stalk makes a fine torch. The fluff can also be used as tinder, insulation, or for lining baby cradleboards. The down is used for baby beds (Murphey 1959).

Lengths of cattail were plied into rope or other size cordage, and cattail rope was used in some areas to bind bundles of tule into tule boats. Air pockets or aerenchyma in the stems provide the buoyancy that makes tule good boat-building material.

Other Uses: Wildlife, wetland restoration, wastewater tertiary treatment, edible (young shoots, base of stem, flower stalks, pollen, rhizomes), and aesthetics. The multitudes of tiny, wind-carried seeds are too small and too hairy to be attractive to birds (Hotchkiss and Dozier 1949). In a few exceptions, the seeds are eaten by several duck species. Cattail rootstocks are much more valuable as food for wildlife than are the seeds. Geese and muskrats prefer the stems and roots. Moose and elk eat fresh spring shoots. Shelter and nesting cover are provided for long-billed marsh wrens, red-wing blackbirds, and yellow-headed blackbirds.