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- ›Cyperoideae
- ›Eleocharideae
spikerushes
Eleocharis
Eleocharis is a virtually cosmopolitan genus of 250 or more species of flowering plants in the sedge family, Cyperaceae. The name is derived from the Greek words ἕλειος (heleios), meaning "marsh dweller," and χάρις (charis), meaning "grace." Members of the genus are known commonly as spikerushes or spikesedges. The genus has a geographically cosmopolitan distribution, with centers of diversity in the Amazon rainforest and adjacent eastern slopes of the South American Andes, northern Australia, eastern North America, California, Southern Africa, and subtropical Asia. The vast majority of Eleocharis species grow in aquatic or mesic habitats from sea level to higher than 5,000 meters in elevation (in the tropical Andes).
The genus itself is relatively easy to recognize; all Eleocharis species have photosynthetic stems but no green leaves (the leaves have been reduced to sheaths surrounding the base of the stems). Many species are robust, rhizomatously-spreading plants of lowland tropical wetlands, while many others are small caespitose annual or perennial herbs growing near streams, and still others are intermediate. There are also a number of species that are obligate aquatic species, which usually have submerged, branching stems and often exhibit interesting photosynthetic adaptations, such as the ability to switch between C3 and C4 carbon fixation in response to different environmental stimuli. In all Eleocharis species, the flowers are borne on unbranched terminal spikelets at the apices of stems.
60 branches of this genus, most-observed first
Eleocharis palustris
complexEleocharis palustris
Blunt Spikerush
speciesEleocharis obtusa
Needle Spikerush
speciesEleocharis acicularis
Canada Spikesedge
speciesEleocharis geniculata
Sharp Spike Sedge
speciesEleocharis acuta
Flat-stem Spikerush
speciesEleocharis compressa
Knotted Spikerush
speciesEleocharis interstincta
squarestem spikerush
speciesEleocharis quadrangulata
Many-stalked Spike-rush
speciesEleocharis multicaulis
Kaya
speciesEleocharis sphacelata
Few-flower Spikerush
speciesEleocharis quinqueflora
Ovate Spikerush
speciesEleocharis ovata
sand spikerush
speciesEleocharis montevidensis
Baldwin's Spikerush
speciesEleocharis baldwinii
elegant spikerush
speciesEleocharis elegans
Slender Spikerush
speciesEleocharis elliptica
Water Chestnut
speciesEleocharis dulcis
Slender Spikerush
speciesEleocharis tenuis
Beaked Spikerush
speciesEleocharis rostellata
Yellow Spikerush
speciesEleocharis flavescens
Gulf Coast Spikerush
speciesEleocharis cellulosa
Long-tubercled Spikerush
speciesEleocharis tuberculosa
Finger Rush
speciesEleocharis limosa
Robbins' Spikerush
speciesEleocharis robbinsii
Small Spikerush
speciesEleocharis parvula
Horsetail Spikerush
speciesEleocharis equisetoides
Glades Spikerush
speciesEleocharis bifida
Matted Spikerush
speciesEleocharis intermedia
Engelmann's Spikerush
speciesEleocharis engelmannii
Wolf's Spikerush
speciesEleocharis wolfii
Parish's spikerush
speciesEleocharis parishii
Slender Spike Sedge
speciesEleocharis gracilis
Viviparous Spikerush
speciesEleocharis vivipara
mountain spikerush
speciesEleocharis montana
Black-fruited Spikerush
speciesEleocharis melanocarpa
Smallfruit Spikerush
speciesEleocharis microcarpa
Slender Spikerush
speciesEleocharis nitida
Eleocharis congesta
speciesEleocharis congesta
Beautiful Spikerush
speciesEleocharis bella
Eleocharis mutata
speciesEleocharis mutata
Drooping Spikerush
speciesEleocharis cylindrostachys
Small's Spikerush
speciesEleocharis smallii
Twisted Spikerush
speciesEleocharis tortilis
Eleocharis acutangula
speciesEleocharis acutangula
Eleocharis pusilla
speciesEleocharis pusilla
Algal Bulrush
speciesEleocharis confervoides
purple spikerush
speciesEleocharis atropurpurea
Eleocharis pallens
speciesEleocharis pallens
Slim Spikerush
speciesEleocharis elongata
Eleocharis yokoscensis
speciesEleocharis yokoscensis
Eleocharis dregeana
speciesEleocharis dregeana
Wright's Spikerush
speciesEleocharis diandra
White Spikerush
speciesEleocharis albida
square-stemmed spike-rush
speciesEleocharis tetraquetra
Eleocharis neozelandica
speciesEleocharis neozelandica
Eleocharis endounifascis
speciesEleocharis endounifascis
Eleocharis minuta
speciesEleocharis minuta
Eleocharis wichurae
speciesEleocharis wichurae
Eleocharis philippinensis
speciesEleocharis philippinensis
Eleocharis carniolica
speciesEleocharis carniolica
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the old herbals & bestiaries
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Eleocharis in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 57022.