- You are here:
- Simple Key
- Aquatic plants
- Water plants with leaves and stems
- Eriocaulon aquaticum
Eriocaulon aquaticum — seven-angled pipewort
Copyright: various copyright holders. To reuse an image, please click it to see who you will need to contact.
New England distribution
Adapted from BONAP data
Native: indigenous.
Non-native: introduced (intentionally or unintentionally); has become naturalized.
County documented: documented to exist in the county by evidence (herbarium specimen, photograph). Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
State documented: documented to exist in the state, but not documented to a county within the state. Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
Note: when native and non-native populations both exist in a county, only native status is shown on the map.
Found this plant? Take a photo and post a sighting.
Facts
seven-angled pipewort is found in wet soil or shallow water of lakes and slow-moving rivers in all New England states. While many other aquatic plants are wind- or water-pollinated, seven-angled pipewort has a nectar gland near the tip of each petal, to attract insect pollinators.
Habitat
Lacustrine (in lakes or ponds), riverine (in rivers or streams), shores of rivers or lakes
Characteristics
- Habitat
-
- aquatic
- wetlands
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Leaf position
- the leaves are all submerged underwater
- Leaf arrangement
- the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant (basal)
- Leaf blade length
- 10–400 mm
- Petal or sepal number
- there are two petals, sepals, or tepals in the flower
- Petal color
-
- other
- white
- Specific leaf type
- the leaf is not divided, rather the blade is made up of one segment
- Floating leaf shape
- NA
- Underwater leaf blade width
- 2–5 mm
- Fruit type (general)
- the fruit is dry and splits open when ripe
- Underwater leaf length
- 10–400 mm
-
Clonal plantlets
- Turion length
- 0 mm
-
Flowers
- Anther color
- there is a noticeable pink, reddish or purplish tint to the anthers
- Carpels fused
- the carpels are fused to one another
- Flower lower lip length
- 0 mm
- Flower position
- the flowers are above the surface of the water
- Flower symmetry
- there are two or more ways to evenly divide the flower (the flower is radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence length
- 4–6 mm
- Inflorescence type
-
- the inflorescence is a pseudanthium (a cluster of small flowers that appear to be one flower (e.g., flower head of composites)
- the inflorescence is a spike (a long unbranched stem with flowers along it that lack stalks)
- Inflorescence width
- 4–10 mm
- Length of flower stalk
- 0 mm
- Length of peduncle
- 30–200 mm
- Nectar spur
- the flower has no nectar spurs
- Number of carpels
- 0–2
- Ovary position
- the sepals and/or petals are attached below the ovary
- Palate on corolla
- no
- Petal and sepal arrangement
- the flower includes two cycles of petal- or sepal-like structures
- Petal appearance
- the petals are thin and delicate, and pigmented (colored other than green or brown)
- Petal color
-
- other
- white
- Petal fringed edges
- the petals are not fringed
- Petal fusion
-
- the perianth parts are fused to form a tube, cup, or bell shape
- the perianth parts are separate
- Petal hairs on inner/upper surface
- there are hairs on the inner/upper petal surface
- Petal length
- 0.5–1.5 mm
- Petal number
- 2
- Petal or sepal number
- there are two petals, sepals, or tepals in the flower
- Pistil number
-
- 0
- 1
- Sepal appearance
- the sepals resemble leaves in color and texture
- Sepal length
- 1.5 mm
- Sepal number
- 2
- Sepals fused only to sepals
-
- the sepals are fused to each other (not other flower parts), at least near their bases
- the sepals are separate from one another
- Spur length
- 0 mm
- Stamen number
-
- 0
- 4
- Stamen position relative to petals
- NA
- Stamens fused to petals
- the stamens are not fused to the petals or tepals
- Style number
- 0–1
-
Fruits or seeds
- Fruit type (general)
- the fruit is dry and splits open when ripe
- Fruit type (specific)
- the fruit is a capsule (splits along two or more seams, apical teeth or pores when dry, to release two or more seeds)
-
Glands or sap
- Oil glands on nodes
- none of the nodes have oil glands
- Sap
- the sap is clear and watery
-
Growth form
- Lifespan
- the plant lives more than two years
- Root septa
- the roots have transverse septa
- Roots floating in water
- there are no clusters of roots floating in the water
- Turions
- there are no turions on the plant
- Underground organs
- there are only slender roots on the plant
-
Leaves
- Bract position (Sparganium)
- NA
- Bract relative length
- At least 1379 mm
- Bracts
- the flowers or their pedicels have bracts at their bases
- Floating leaf basal lobes
- NA
- Floating leaf blade width
- 0 mm
- Floating leaf length
- 0 mm
- Floating leaf shape
- NA
- Floating leaf tip
- NA
- Floral bract form
- the bracts are roughly as lobed as the foliage leaves
- Floral bract length
- 1–1.5 mm
- Leaf arrangement
- the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant (basal)
- Leaf blade length
- 10–400 mm
- Leaf blade veins
- the lateral veins are parallel or slightly arched in the direction of the tip
- Leaf blade width
- 2–5 mm
- Leaf position
- the leaves are all submerged underwater
- Leaf special features
- none of the mentioned special features are present
- Leaf-like branch segments
- 0
- Leaf-like branch shape
- NA
- Specific leaf type
- the leaf is not divided, rather the blade is made up of one segment
- Staminate bract edge (Myriophyllum)
- NA
- Stipule appearance
- NA
- Stipule fused to leaf
- NA
- Stipules
- there are no stipules on the plant
- Stipules fused around stem
- NA
- Trap-bladder length
- 0 mm
- Underwater leaf air passage number
- At least 1440
- Underwater leaf air passage relative width
- At least 1442
- Underwater leaf blade edges
- the underwater leaf has smooth edges, without teeth
- Underwater leaf blade shape
-
- the underwater leaf blade is linear (very narrow with more or less parallel sides)
- the underwater leaf blade is subulate (awl-shaped; narrowly tapering from the base to the tip)
- Underwater leaf blade veins
- 3–9
- Underwater leaf blade width
- 2–5 mm
- Underwater leaf length
- 10–400 mm
- Underwater leaf stalk
- no
- Underwater leaf stalk length
- 0 mm
- Underwater leaf tip shape
- the tip of the underwater leaf is acuminate (tapers to a long, thin point)
- Veins in floating leaf
- 0
-
Place
- Habitat
-
- aquatic
- wetlands
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Specific habitat
-
- in lakes or ponds
- in rivers or streams
- shores of rivers or lakes
-
Stem, shoot, branch
- Flowering stem growth form
- the flowering stem is upright
Wetland status
Occurs only in wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: OBL)
New England distribution and conservation status
Distribution
- Connecticut
- present
- Maine
- present
- Massachusetts
- present
- New Hampshire
- present
- Rhode Island
- present
- Vermont
- present
Conservation status
Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.
- Massachusetts
- unranked (S-rank: SNR)
Native to North America?
Yes
Synonyms
- Cespa aquatica Hill
- Eriocaulon pellucidum Michx.
Family
Genus
From the dichotomous key of Flora Novae Angliae
1. Eriocaulon aquaticum (Hill) Druce N
seven-angled pipewort. Cespa aquatica Hill; Eriocaulon pellucidum Michx. • CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT. Wet soil or shallow water of lakes and slow-moving rivers. The name Eriocaulon septangulare Withering, which has been used for this species, is invalid.