Eleocharis macrostachya

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Monocots
Cladus: Commelinids
Ordo: Poales

Familia: Cyperaceae
Subfamilia: Cyperoideae
Tribus: Eleocharideae
Genus: Eleocharis
Species: Eleocharis macrostachya
Name

Eleocharis macrostachya Britton in J.K.Small, Fl. S.E. U.S.: 184 (1903).
Synonyms

Heterotypic
Eleocharis perlonga Fernald & Brackett, Rhodora 31: 70 (1929).
Eleocharis xyridiformis Fernald & Brackett, Rhodora 31: 76 (1929).

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Continental: Temp. & Subalpine America
Alaska; Alberta; Argentina Northeast; Argentina Northwest; Argentina South; Arizona; Arkansas; Bolivia; British Columbia; California; Chile Central; Colorado; Idaho; Illinois; Iowa; Kansas; Louisiana; Manitoba; Mexico Central; Mexico Northeast; Mexico Northwest; Mexico Southeast; Mexico Southwest; Minnesota; Mississippi; Missouri; Montana; Nebraska; Nevada; New Mexico; North Dakota; Oklahoma; Ontario; Oregon; Peru; Qubec; Saskatchewan; South Dakota; Tennessee; Texas; Uruguay; Utah; Washington; Wisconsin; Wyoming; Yukon

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References
Primary references

Britton, N.L. in J. K. Small, 1903. Flora of the Southeastern United States 184, 1327.

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2020. Eleocharis macrostachya in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2020 Feb 16. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2020. Eleocharis macrostachya. Published online. Accessed: Feb 16 2020.
Govaerts, R. et al. 2020. Eleocharis macrostachya in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2020 Feb 16. Reference page.
Tropicos.org 2020. Eleocharis macrostachya. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published online. Accessed: 16 Feb 2020.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Eleocharis macrostachya in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 08-Apr-12.

Vernacular names
English: pale spikerush, Creeping spikerush, Pale spikerush
français: Eléocharide à gros épi

Eleocharis macrostachya is a species of spikesedge known by the common name pale spikerush.

It is widely distributed in North America and occurs in parts of South America.[1][2] It is a plant of varied moist habitats, including freshwater lakes and brackish marshes and ponds, ditches, vernal pools, and wet meadows.
Contents

1 Description
2 Use in phytoremediation efforts
3 References
4 External links

Description

Eleocharis macrostachya is a rhizomatous perennial generally reaching heights between one half and one meter. It has bright green erect stems and straw-colored basal leaves. The top of each stem is occupied by a narrow, lance-shaped or cylindrical inflorescence. The spikelet is one or two centimeters long and has at least ten flowers, each covered with a purplish-brown bract. The fruit is a yellow or yellow-brown achene with a whitish cone-shaped tubercle on one end, measuring one or two millimeters long.[3]
Use in phytoremediation efforts

E. macrostachya has been studied as part of wetland restoration, as well as the removal of arsenic in groundwater via rhizofiltration as part of phytoremediation.[4][5] Wetlands have the capacity to remove many conventional contaminants from wastewater, even in highly saline water.[6] Olmos-Marquez (2012) identified E. macrostachya as having the greatest arsenic retention in an experimental wetland, suggesting that it acts as a rhizofiltrator.[7][8]
References

Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
"Eleocharis macrostachya". Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Agricultural Research Service (ARS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 2013-01-22.
Flora of North America, Eleocharis macrostachya Britton in J. K. Small, Fl. S.E. U.S. 184, 1327. 1903.
"Tree spade transplanting of Spartina pectinata (Link) and Eleocharis macrostachya (Britt.) in a prairie wetland restoration site". Aquatic Botany. 71 (4): 297–304. 2001-12-01. doi:10.1016/S0304-3770(01)00185-1. ISSN 0304-3770.
Márquez, Mario Alberto Olmos; Rivero, Jesús Manuel Ochoa; Herrera, María Teresa Alarcón; Estrada, Eduardo Santellano; Vega-Mares, José Humberto; Aragón, María Cecilia Valles (2020). "Performance of a Pilot Subsurface Flow Treatment Wetland System, Used for Arsenic Removal from Reverse Osmosis Concentrate, in the Municipality of Julimes, Chihuahua, Mexico". Ingeniería y universidad (24): 10. ISSN 0123-2126.
Berg, Elisa C.; Borges, Alisson C. (2020). "Use of plants in the remediation of arsenic-contaminated waters". Water Environment Research. 92 (10): 1669–1676. doi:10.1002/wer.1419. ISSN 1554-7531.
Olmos-Márquez, Mario Alberto; Alarcón-Herrera, Maria Teresa; Martín-Domínguez, Ignacio Ramiro (2012-03-01). "Performance of Eleocharis macrostachya and its importance for arsenic retention in constructed wetlands". Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 19 (3): 763–771. doi:10.1007/s11356-011-0598-x. ISSN 1614-7499.
Phytoremediation of arsenic using a chemical stabilizer and Eleocharis macrostachya in a contaminated mining soil. CRC Press. 2019-08-23. doi:10.1201/9781351046633-190/phytoremediation-arsenic-using-chemical-stabilizer-eleocharis-macrostachya-contaminated-mining-soil-ochoa-rivero-olmos-márquez-sáenz-uribe-alarcón-herrera. ISBN 978-1-351-04663-3.