Hardstem Bulrush
Schoenoplectus acutus
Native to Arkansas (estimated). How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 65%
- Height
- Culms are slender and erect, usually 3.3 to 10 feet tall, but occasionally reaching heights of 16.5 feet [24,27,38,45,48].
- Light
- 4 or more hours of direct sun
- Soil moisture
- Moist to wet
No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves · Bloom
Bloom: NC species account not read yet.
Spread and leaves: no source found yet.
This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.
County records are not available.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Arkansas. Shared habitat, not food. 27 animals.
Widespread birds also seen here (61)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
- Alder Flycatcher
- American Goldfinch
- American Redstart
- American Robin
- Bald Eagle
- Belted Kingfisher
- Black-and-White Warbler
- Black-crowned Night-heron
- Blue Grosbeak
- Blue Jay
- Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
- Brown Creeper
- Canada Goose
- Cedar Waxwing
- Chimney Swift
- Cliff Swallow
- Common Nighthawk
- Common Yellowthroat
- Cooper's Hawk
- Double-crested Cormorant
- Downy Woodpecker
- Eastern Kingbird
- Eastern Screech-owl
- Eurasian Collared-dove
- European Starling
- Golden-crowned Kinglet
- Gray Catbird
- Great Horned Owl
- Hairy Woodpecker
- Harris's Sparrow
- Hooded Merganser
- Lincoln's Sparrow
- Mallard
- Mississippi Kite
- Mourning Dove
- Northern Cardinal
- Northern Flicker
- Northern Mockingbird
- Orange-crowned Warbler
- Osprey
- Pine Siskin
- Purple Finch
- Red-headed Woodpecker
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Ruby-crowned Kinglet
- Rusty Blackbird
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Song Sparrow
- Spotted Sandpiper
- Tree Swallow
- Tufted Titmouse
- Turkey Vulture
- White-breasted Nuthatch
- White-throated Sparrow
- Wood Thrush
- Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
- Yellow-billed Cuckoo
- Yellow-breasted Chat
- Yellow-crowned Night-heron
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Who uses this plant?
7CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AR
Genus host records with ranges including AR · Scirpus
- Apamea sordensBordered Apamea, Rustic Shoulder-Knot
- Bactra furfuranaRush Bactra
- Bactra verutanaJavelin Moth
- Euphyes dionDion Skipper, Sedge Skipper
- Globia oblongaOblong Sedge Borer Moth, Large Noagria
- Ledaea perditalisLost Owlet, 3-Stripe Cephalanthus caterpillar, Buttonbush Owlet
- Donacaula dispersella
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
6BirdsRecorded eating Schoenoplectus in Arkansas
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes Arkansas, most records first.
- SoraSeeds. 12 diet records
- CanvasbackSeeds and roots. 3 diet records
- Snow GooseRoots. 2 diet records
- MallardSeeds. 2 diet records
- Northern PintailSeeds. 2 diet records
- Lesser ScaupSeeds. 1 diet record
Direct food only. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Birds that eat Schoenoplectus 6
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.
- SoraPorzana carolina
- CanvasbackAythya valisineria
- Snow GooseChen caerulescens
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
Plant details
- Family
- Cyperaceae
- Flower color
- Pink, green or brown
What its natural habitat tells you
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Flower color · “Pink, green or brown” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Height · “Culms are slender and erect, usually 3.3 to 10 feet (1-3 m) tall, but occasionally reaching heights of 16.5 feet (5 m) [24,27,38,45,48].” · Fire Effects Information System: Schoenoplectus acutus (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs) · Source botanical description; original units and scope retained
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Also known as
Scirpus acutus; bulrush
Conservation status
| Arkansas rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| AR status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Arkansas occurrence source
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications