Lesser Bulrush

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

Foodplant / feeds on
larva of Donacia thalassina feeds on root of Typha angustifolia

Foodplant / feeds on
larva of Donacia vulgaris feeds on root of Typha angustifolia

Plant / resting place / among
subaquatic cocoon of Macroplea appendiculata may be found among roots of Typha angustifolia

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

In Great Britain and/or Ireland:
Foodplant / saprobe
covered, black pycnidium of Septoria coelomycetous anamorph of Septoria menispora is saprobic on dead leaf of Typha angustifolia
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 angustifolia

Prior to N. Hotchkiss and H. L. Dozier (1949), Typha domingensis was generally included within T. angustifolia in North America. Because of many misidentified specimens, range expansion in recent years, and undercollecting, the distribution on the margins of the main range is somewhat uncertain. Many literature reports are based on misidentified specimens. Some workers suggested T. angustifolia was early introduced from Europe into Atlantic Coastal North America and migrated westward (R. L. Stuckey and D. P. Salamon 1987). In recent decades it has expanded its range in many regions and become much more abundant, especially in roadside ditches and other highly disturbed habitats. For example, although it was known only from one Wisconsin station in 1929 (N. C. Fassett 1930) and was very local in Iowa in 1939 (A. Hayden 1939), it is now common and widespread in both states. As it often out-competes many native marsh species to produce very dense, pure stands, and hybridizes with T. latifolia to form the probably even more competitive T. glauca, T. angustifolia and T. glauca should perhaps be classified as noxious weeds in parts of North America. Beyond the main range of T. angustifolia, there are specimens of T. glauca from north-central Montana (Phillips County.), west-central Manitoba (La Pas), and Anticosti Island, Quebec. There are m Many erroneous reports have come from outside of Europe and North America. For hybrids see also genus and key.

Erect shoots 150--300 cm, not glaucous; flowering shoots 5--12 mm thick in middle; stems 2--3 mm thick near inflorescence. Leaves: sheath sides membranous, margin broadly clear, summit with membranous auricles which often disintegrate late in season; mucilage glands at sheath-blade transition brown, absent from blade and usually from sheath center near summit; widest blades on shoot 4--12 mm wide when fresh, 3--8 mm when dry; distal blade usually markedly exceeding inflorescence. Inflorescences: staminate spikes separated from pistillate by 1--8(--12) cm of naked axis, ca. as long as pistillate, 1 cm thick in anthesis; staminate scales variable in same spike, straw-colored to medium brown, filiform, simple to bifid or sometimes cuneate and irregularly branched, to 6  0.1 mm; pistillate spikes in flower when fresh dark brown with whitish stigmas (drying brown), later medium brown, in fruit when fresh as stigmas wear off often greenish due to green carpodia, (4--)6--20 cm  5--6 mm in flower, 13--22 mm in fruit; compound pedicels in fruit peg-like, 0.5--0.7 mm; pistillate bracteole blades forming spike surface before flowering, later exceeded by stigmas and about equaling or slightly exceeded by pistil hairs, very dark to medium brown, much darker than (or sometimes as dark as) stigmas, irregularly spatulate, 0.6  0.1--0.2 mm, wider than or about as wide as stigmas, apex rounded (to acute). Staminate flowers 4--6 mm; anthers 1.5--2 mm, thecae yellow, apex dark brown; pollen in monads or some in irregular clusters. Pistillate flowers 2 mm in flower, 5--7 mm in fruit; pistil-hair tips medium brown, distinctly swollen at 10--20X; stigmas sometimes deciduous in fruit, in flower erect, elongating, bending to form surface mat, white in flower, drying brownish, later medium brown, narrowly linear-lanceolate, 0.6--1.4  0.1 mm; carpodia slightly exceeded by and visible among pistil hairs at mature spike surface, green when young and fresh, straw-colored with orange-brown spots when dry, apex nearly truncate. 2n = 30.

B.C., Man., N.B., N.S., Ont., P.E.I., Que., Sask.; Ark., Calif., Colo., Conn., Del., Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Ky., Maine, Md., Mass., Mich., Minn., 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., Vt., Va., Wash., W. Va., Wis., Wyo.; Eurasia.

Temperate and subtropical regions in Europe, Asia & N.America.

200 m

Flowering late spring--summer.

Often somewhat brackish or subsaline water or wet soil; 0--1900m.

More info for the terms: cover, density, marsh

The effects of fire on the narrowleaf cattail hybrid T.
× glauca were determined for a New Brunswick marsh.  The marsh was divided into two
sections, each containing four blocks of four plots.  In each section one
block was burned in early and mid-June, one was burned in early and
mid-July, and one was burned in mid-August and mid-September.
Vegetation was measured the third postfire year.  Following each fire,
plots were either drained or flooded.  On the drained sites T.
× glauca cover, density, and height were least on the plots burned in July.
Other burned plots did not differ significantly from the control.  On
the flooded sites July-burned plots had greater T. × glauca cover than
control plots.  Other burned plots did not differ significantly from the
control [30]. 

narrowleaf cattail
narrow-leaved cattail
narrow-leaf cattail
narrowleaved cattail

More info for the term: cover

Narrowleaf cattail provides important cover for muskrats and a
variety of waterfowl [4,6,27].  White-tailed deer use cattail for cover
[31].

Narrowleaf cattail is an erect, rhizomatous perennial that grows 3 to
6 feet (1-2 m) tall [15].  Its lateral rhizomes, produced at the leaf
base, can grow up to 27.6 inches (70 cm) long and 0.8 to 1.6 inches (2-4
cm) in diameter [15].  Its leaves are 2 to 5 feet (0.6-1.5 m) long, very
narrow, and flattened [10,12].  Flowers grow on erect stalks, and the
fruits are cigar-shaped and 2 to 6 inches (5-15 cm) long.  Fruits contain
soft, downy seeds [10].

Narrowleaf cattail occurs from Nova Scotia south through parts of New
England along the coast to southern Florida.  It occurs in the Midwest
south to southeastern Texas.  Scattered populations are found throughout
Nebraska and Wyoming, parts of the Intermountain West, and along the
Pacific Northwest coast into central California [10].

More info for the term: fire regime

Cattail rhizomes sprout following fire [4].

FIRE REGIMES :
Find fire regime information for the plant communities in which this
species may occur by entering the species name in the FEIS home page under
"Find FIRE REGIMES".

More info for the terms: fuel, marsh, oligotrophic

Fire can be used to reduce aboveground debris, opening up stands for
nesting waterfowl.  Burning in winter when rhizomes are buried in ice or
in frozen soil usually will not kill cattail.  If the objective is to
create more open stands for wildlife, burning should be conducted in
spring following a relatively dry winter, when the marsh is dry [4].

Fire has been used to provide openings in cattail (Typha spp.) marshes
for mallard foraging. In the St Clair Wildlife Refuge, Ontario, mallards
used openings that were created by winter burning followed by spring
flooding.  Mallard foraging effort was positively correlated with invertebrate
biomass and opening size (P<0.001).  Burning produced less cattail mortality
than winter mowing followed by spring flooding [1].  For detailed
information, refer to the Research Project Summary Winter
fire in a marshland in St Clair National Wildlife Area, Ontario.

Cattail marshes are difficult to burn 2 years in a row because
accumulated debris is needed for fuel.  The thick bases of cattail
species are often the last part of the plant to dry out and are
difficult to burn.

Canada geese, herons, egrets, and other waterfowl use burned marsh areas
for feeding and nesting [4].

Draining and burning marshes during July inhibits rapid growth of
cattail species.  Several fires during summer will release nutrients if
a portion of the organic mat is removed [30].  Draining and burning
before a thick mat layer forms is necessary for slowing palludification.
Fires on nutrient-poor fens can reduce species diversity and create
oligotrophic bogs, but on nutrient-rich sites fires will not typically
reduce species diversity [30].

More info on this topic.

More info for the term: helophyte

  
   Helophyte

More info for the term: marsh

Narrowleaf cattail grows in marshes, wet meadows, fens, estuaries,
bogs, ditches, and along lake shores.  It is tolerant of saline
environments [15,31].  Where T. angustifolia and T. latifolia occur
together, T. angustifolia usually colonizes the deeper waters (31.5 in.
[80 cm] or more) [16].

In Utah, narrowleaf cattail occurs in peaty soils of salt marshes and
colonizes deep sloughs and sloping marsh perimeters [5].

In Wisconsin, water levels seem to be the most important factor affecting
cattail occurrence and establishment [4].  Typha spp. grow best under
stable moisture conditions, saturated soil, and water up to 1.5 feet
(45 cm) deep.  Narrowleaf cattail can grow in water as deep as 2.5
feet (76 cm) [4].  After establishment, it can tolerate fluctuating
water levels including periods of drought and deep flooding.  In
Wisconsin cattail species usually grow in soils that are fertile and
nutrient rich [4].  Narrowleaf cattail height growth is best in hot
temperatures but does not seem to be adversely affected by extreme cold [4].

More info on this topic.

This species is known to occur in association with the following cover types (as classified by the Society of American Foresters):

    63  Cottonwood
   235  Cottonwood - willow

More info on this topic.

This species is known to occur in the following ecosystem types (as named by the U.S. Forest Service in their Forest and Range Ecosystem [FRES] Type classification):

   FRES17  Elm - ash - cottonwood
   FRES28  Western hardwoods
   FRES37  Mountain meadows
   FRES39  Prairie
   FRES41  Wet grasslands
   FRES42  Annual grasslands

More info on this topic.

This species is known to occur in association with the following plant community types (as classified by Küchler 1964):

   K049  Tule marshes
   K072  Sea oats prairie
   K073  Northern cordgrass prairie
   K074  Bluestem prairie
   K092  Everglades

More info for the terms: density, peat

Burning top-kills narrowleaf cattail and reduces stem density [1]. 
Fires that burn into the peat layer can kill cattail [4].

Narrowleaf cattail is eaten by waterfowl and muskrats [24,27].
Muskrats also construct their lodges with cattail, and blackbirds use
cattail for perches [31].  Extensive monotypic stands of cattail are
usually poor habitat for wildlife [1].

More info for the term: lichens

Narrowleaf cattail is listed as a riparian dominance type in the
following publication:

Riparian dominance types of Montana [31]

Some associates of narrowleaf cattail include sedges (Carex spp.),
bulrushes (Scirpus spp.), rushes (Juncus spp.), sphagnum mosses
(Sphagnum ssp.), lichens (Cladonia spp.), kalmia (Kalmia spp.), foxtail
barley (Critestion jubatum), reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinaceae),
oakleaf goosefoot (Chenopodium glaucum), curled dock (Rumex crispus),
panicgrass (Panicum spp.), cottonsedge (Eriophorum spissum), buttonbush
(Cephalanthus occidentalis), spiraea (Spiraea spp.), blueberries
(Vaccinium spp.), viburnum (Viburnum spp.), chufa flatsedge (Cyperus
esculentus), and dwarf huckleberry (Gaylussacia dumosa) [8,28].

More info for the term: graminoid

Graminoid

More info for the terms: cover, density, marsh, restoration, seed

Although narrowleaf cattail is useful in wetland restoration
projects, without control it will form dense stands that eventually
outcompete other valuable wildlife food and cover species [4].  It can
be controlled with herbicides and through marsh drawdowns or by flooding
over freshly cut stubble to reduce oxygen to the rhizomes [15].

A study of the effects of cutting cattail, then flooding the area,
showed that stem densities were reduced by 89 percent the first year.
When cut a second time, densities were reduced by 99 percent.  No
fruiting heads or seed germination occurred following cutting and
flooding [1].

Draining a New Brunswick marsh caused a 36 percent increase in
narrowleaf cattail cover and a 50 percent increase in stem density.
However, plant height and basal diameter were reduced by 16.54 percent
and 7.14, respectively [30].

More info for the term: litter

Food values for leaf litter of the narrowleaf cattail hybrid, T.
× glauca, have been listed [22]:

type           time         %nitrogen    %phosphorus       %ash

green        early July       2.77         0.29            6.55
senesced     early Feb.       0.63         0.05            3.89

     AL  AR  CA  CT  DE  FL  GA  IL  IN  IA
     KY  LA  ME  MD  MA  MI  MN  MS  MO  MT
     NE  NH  NJ  NY  NC  OH  OR  PA  RI  SC
     TN  TX  UT  VT  VA  WV  WI  WY  MB  NB
     NS  ON  PQ

Rhizomes are eaten whole or ground into flour.  Shoots, seeds, flowers,
pollen, and stems are also eaten.  Stems and leaves are woven into
baskets and rope or used in roofing, bedding, and paper manufacturing
[10,15].  Many other uses for narrowleaf cattail have been documented
[21].

More info on this topic.

More info for the terms: formation, marsh, rhizome

Leaves emerge in the spring, flowering is initiated in early to
mid-summer, and the greatest clonal growth occurs in the fall [15].
Under good conditions, seeds germinate from May to September [4].
Aerial shoot growth continues into November or until the first freeze
when plants go dormant [20].  Development times in a Wisconsin marsh
were:  April:  aerial shoot sprout, new rhizome formation, leaves; May:
new shoots; June:  spikes formed; July:  basal shoots and flower head
development; August through September:  maturation of flower head [4].

Narrowleaf cattail will sprout following fire if rhizomes are not
consumed [1,4]. 

More info for the terms: ground residual colonizer, herb, rhizome

   Rhizomatous herb, rhizome in soil
   Ground residual colonizer (on-site, initial community)

More info for the term: seed

Cattails reproduce by seed and rhizomes.  Their primary means of
colonizing is by seed, and once established, colonies are maintained by
vegetative reproduction [16].  Seeds are wind pollinated and require
moisture, but not oxygen for germination [15].  Laboratory studies have
shown that seeds germinate best in water 1 inch (2.5 cm) deep, but can
germinate in water as deep as 16 inches (40 cm) [4].  In the field seed
germination usually occurs following exposure of mudflats.
Narrowleaf cattail was found in wetland seedbanks that had been
drained for more than 70 years [32].

More info on this topic.

This species can be found in the following regions of the western United States (according to the Bureau of Land Management classification of Physiographic Regions of the western United States):

    1  Northern Pacific Border
    2  Cascade Mountains
    3  Southern Pacific Border
    5  Columbia Plateau
    8  Northern Rocky Mountains
    9  Middle Rocky Mountains
   10  Wyoming Basin
   14  Great Plains

More info on this topic.

More info for the term: litter

Narrowleaf cattail is considered an early to mid-seral species and a
dominant in disturbed wetlands [15].  In the absence of disturbance,
narrowleaf cattail dominates marshes in dense, monotypic stands [18].
Under these conditions productivity is lowered because of litter
buildup, and narrowleaf cattail outcompetes other species.
Narrowleaf cattail replaces cordgrass (Spartina spp.) in marshes
where coastal wetlands are diked or tidally restricted [2,23].

The currently accepted scientific name for narrowleaf cattail is
Typha angustifolia L. in the family Typhaceae [12].

Typha angustifolia hybridizes with T. latifolia to form T. × glauca
Godron. [14].

More info for the terms: cover, restoration, rhizome

Narrowleaf cattail is used in prairie wetland restoration [17].  It
is used to create wetlands for mitigating the effects of wastewater
treatment plants and landfills [9].  A shoreline restoration project to
provide cover for largemouth bass and other fish determined that rhizome
transplants have better survivorship than transplanted greenhouse stock [7].

Typha angustifolia L. Sp. PI. 971, 1753
Typha domxngensis Pers. Syn. PI. 2 : 532. 1807.
Typha spiralis Raf . Atl. Jour. 1 : 148. 1832.
Typha gracilis Raf. New Fl. 2 : 91. 1837.
Typha latifolia angustifolia Wood, Class Book 367. 1845.
Typha angustifolia domingensis Griseb. Fl. Brit. W. Ind. 512. 1864.
Typha americana L,. C. Rich.; Rohrb. Verh. Bot. Ver. Brand. 11 : 97, as synonym. 1870.
Typha bracieata Greene, Bull. Calif. Acad. 2 : 413. 1887.
Typha dominginensis Kronf. Verh. Zool.-Bot. Ges. Wien 39: 163. 1889.
Typha angustifolia dominginensis Kronf. Verh. Zool.-Bot. Ges. "Wien 39 : 163, as synonym. 1889.
Stems slender, l^Jm. tall ; leaves narrowly linear, 3-20 mm. broad ; racemes lightor dark-brown, the staminate and pistillate portions usually separated by a small interval, each 1-4 dm. in length; pistillate portion with bractlets, 0.5-2 cm. in diameter; stigmas linear or oblong-linear ; hairs accompanying the pistillate* flowers with or without club-shaped tips ; pollen-grains simple ; the denuded rachis of the mature pistillate raceme slender, 3-4.5 mm. thick, roughened by the short, rigid pedicels which are 1 mm. or less in length.
Type locality : Europe.
Distribution : Marshes, chiefly along the coast, from Nova Scotia to Florida, and westward to California ; Mexico to Panama, Colombia, Guiana, and Patagonia ; Bermuda, Bahamas, Greater Antilles, and Danish West Indies ; also in Europe and Asia.

Typha angustifolia L. (also lesser bulrush, narrowleaf cattail or lesser reedmace) is a perennial herbaceous plant of genus Typha. This cattail is an "obligate wetland" species that is commonly found in the northern hemisphere in brackish locations.