Slim Spikerush
Eleocharis elongata
In the Carolinas and Georgia, found in quiet waters of limesink (doline) ponds, Everglades sawgrass sloughs. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Louisiana. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 88%
- Height
- Up to about 32 inches
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Wet to standing water
No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source
Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Bloom
- July to August
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves
Recorded in 3 Louisiana parishes.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Still water and its edges: ponds, lakes, millponds and reservoirs.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Louisiana. Shared habitat, not food. 167 animals.
- Neotropic CormorantPhalacrocorax brasilianus
- Northern BobwhiteColinus virginianus
- Northern ParulaParula americana
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Northern WaterthrushSeiurus noveboracensis
- Painted BuntingPasserina ciris
- Palm WarblerDendroica palmarum
- Peregrine FalconFalco peregrinus
- Pied-billed GrebePodilymbus podiceps
- Pine SiskinCarduelis pinus
- Pine WarblerDendroica pinus
- Piping PloverCharadrius melodus
- Prothonotary WarblerProtonotaria citrea
- Purple MartinProgne subis
- Red KnotCalidris canutus
- Red-breasted MerganserMergus serrator
- Red-cockaded WoodpeckerPicoides borealis
- Red-headed WoodpeckerMelanerpes erythrocephalus
- Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensis
- Ring-necked PheasantPhasianus colchicus
- Royal TernThalasseus maximus
- Ruddy DuckOxyura jamaicensis
- Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpres
- Rusty BlackbirdEuphagus carolinus
Widespread birds also seen here (17)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
Who uses this plant?
6CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including LA
Genus host records with ranges including LA · Eleocharis
- Bactra furfuranaRush Bactra
- Cisseps fulvicollisYellow-Collared Scape Moth
- Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
- Parapoynx allionealisWatermilfoil Leafcutter, Bladderwort Casemaker
- Donacaula dispersella
- Thopeutis forbesellus
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
11BirdsRecorded eating Eleocharis in Louisiana
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes Louisiana, most records first.
- Ring-necked Duck5 diet records
- SoraSeeds. 4 diet records
- American CootSeeds. 3 diet records
- GadwallLeaves. 3 diet records
- Snow GooseLeaves. 3 diet records
- American WigeonSeeds. 2 diet records
- Sandhill CraneSeeds. 2 diet records
- American Black DuckSeeds. 1 diet record
- Canada GooseLeaves. 1 diet record
- Fulvous Whistling-duckSeeds. 1 diet record
Show all 11
- Red-winged Blackbird1 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 Eleocharis 11
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.
- Ring-necked DuckAythya collaris
- SoraPorzana carolina
- American CootFulica americana
- GadwallAnas strepera
- Snow GooseChen caerulescens
- American WigeonAnas americana
- Sandhill CraneGrus canadensis
- American Black DuckAnas rubripes
- Canada GooseBranta canadensis
- Fulvous Whistling-duckDendrocygna bicolor
- Red-winged BlackbirdAgelaius phoeniceus
Plant details
- Family
- Cyperaceae
- Flower color
- Red, green, brown or black
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “July to August” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Red, green, brown or black” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Height · “Up to about 32 inches” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Light · “Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil · “Water; Wet (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Conservation status
| Louisiana rank | S2 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5? |
| LA 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
- NatureServe Explorer
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition
- Louisiana 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