Ruppia maritima
Encyclopedia
Ruppia maritima is a species of aquatic plant
known by the common name wigeongrass. Despite its Latin name, it is not a marine plant
; is perhaps best described as a salt-tolerant
freshwater
species.
bodies, such as marsh
es. It is a dominant plant in a great many shoreline regions. It does not grow well in turbid
water or low-oxygen substrates.
anchored shallowly in the wet substrate. It produces a long, narrow, straight or loosely coiled inflorescence
tipped with two tiny flowers. The plant often self-pollinates, but the flowers also release pollen
that reaches other plants as it floats away on bubbles.
The fruits are drupe
lets. They are dispersed
in the water and inside the guts of fish and waterbirds that eat them. The plant also reproduces vegetatively
by sprouting from its rhizome to form colonies.
. In many areas, wetlands wetlands restoration
begins with the recovery and protection of this plant.
Aquatic plant
Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments. They are also referred to as hydrophytes or aquatic macrophytes. These plants require special adaptations for living submerged in water, or at the water's surface. Aquatic plants can only grow in water or in soil that is...
known by the common name wigeongrass. Despite its Latin name, it is not a marine plant
Marine biology
Marine biology is the scientific study of organisms in the ocean or other marine or brackish bodies of water. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather...
; is perhaps best described as a salt-tolerant
Halophyte
A halophyte is a plant that grows where it is affected by salinity in the root area or by salt spray, such as in saline semi-deserts, mangrove swamps, marshes and sloughs, and seashores. An example of a halophyte is the salt marsh grass Spartina alterniflora . Relatively few plant species are...
freshwater
Freshwater
Fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Fresh water is generally characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and...
species.
Distribution
It can be found throughout the world, most often in coastal areas, where it grows in brackish waterBrackish water
Brackish water is water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing of seawater with fresh water, as in estuaries, or it may occur in brackish fossil aquifers. The word comes from the Middle Dutch root "brak," meaning "salty"...
bodies, such as marsh
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
es. It is a dominant plant in a great many shoreline regions. It does not grow well in turbid
Turbidity
Turbidity is the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by individual particles that are generally invisible to the naked eye, similar to smoke in air. The measurement of turbidity is a key test of water quality....
water or low-oxygen substrates.
Description
Ruppia maritima is a thread-thin, grasslike annual or perennial herb which grows from a rhizomeRhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
anchored shallowly in the wet substrate. It produces a long, narrow, straight or loosely coiled inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
tipped with two tiny flowers. The plant often self-pollinates, but the flowers also release pollen
Pollen
Pollen is a fine to coarse powder containing the microgametophytes of seed plants, which produce the male gametes . Pollen grains have a hard coat that protects the sperm cells during the process of their movement from the stamens to the pistil of flowering plants or from the male cone to the...
that reaches other plants as it floats away on bubbles.
The fruits are drupe
Drupe
In botany, a drupe is a fruit in which an outer fleshy part surrounds a shell of hardened endocarp with a seed inside. These fruits develop from a single carpel, and mostly from flowers with superior ovaries...
lets. They are dispersed
Biological dispersal
Biological dispersal refers to species movement away from an existing population or away from the parent organism. Through simply moving from one habitat patch to another, the dispersal of an individual has consequences not only for individual fitness, but also for population dynamics, population...
in the water and inside the guts of fish and waterbirds that eat them. The plant also reproduces vegetatively
Vegetative reproduction
Vegetative reproduction is a form of asexual reproduction in plants. It is a process by which new individuals arise without production of seeds or spores...
by sprouting from its rhizome to form colonies.
Wetlands and wildlife
This plant is an important part of the diet of many species of waterfowlWaterfowl
Waterfowl are certain wildfowl of the order Anseriformes, especially members of the family Anatidae, which includes ducks, geese, and swans....
. In many areas, wetlands wetlands restoration
Restoration ecology
-Definition:Restoration ecology is the scientific study and practice of renewing and restoring degraded, damaged, or destroyed ecosystems and habitats in the environment by active human intervention and action, within a short time frame...
begins with the recovery and protection of this plant.
See also
- Wetland indicator statusWetland Indicator StatusWetland indicator status denotes the probability of individual species of vascular plants occurring in freshwater, brackish and saltwater wetlands in the United States. The wetland status of 7,000 plants is determined upon information contained in a list compiled in the National Wetland Inventory...
- Wetland conservationWetland conservationWetland conservation is aimed at protecting and preserving areas where water exists at or near the Earth's surface, such as swamps, marshes and bogs. Wetlands cover at least six per cent of the Earth and have become a focal issue for conservation due to the ecosystem services they provide...
- Wetland classificationWetland classificationClassification of wetlands has been a problematical task, with the commonly accepted definition of what constitutes a wetland being among the major difficulties. A number of national wetland classifications exit. In 1970s, the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance introduced a...
- Constructed wetlandConstructed wetlandA constructed wetland or wetpark is an artificial wetland, marsh or swamp created as a new or restored habitat for native and migratory wildlife, for anthropogenic discharge such as wastewater, stormwater runoff, or sewage treatment, for land reclamation after mining, refineries, or other...
External links
- Ruppia maritima at the IUCN Red ListIUCN Red ListThe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , founded in 1963, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species...
- Jepson Manual Treatment - Ruppia maritima
- USDA Plants Profile: Ruppia maritima
- Flora of North America
- Ruppia maritima - Photo gallery