Longleaf Pondweed
Potamogeton nodosus
Found in ponds, lakes, streams, and rivers. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Mississippi (estimated). How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 100%
- Height
- Up to 6 feet
- Light
- Partial shade, Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Standing water

At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Bloom
- May to September
- Fruiting season
- Summer
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves
Recorded in 13 Mississippi counties.
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.
Streams, rivers and their banks
Flowing water and its banks, bars and rocky shoals.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Mississippi. Shared habitat, not food. 60 animals.
- Swainson's WarblerLimnothlypis swainsonii
- Swamp SparrowMelospiza georgiana
- White IbisEudocimus albus
- White-breasted NuthatchSitta carolinensis
- Wild TurkeyMeleagris gallopavo
- Wilson's PloverCharadrius wilsonia
- Wilson's SnipeGallinago delicata
- Wilson's WarblerWilsonia pusilla
- Wood DuckAix sponsa
- Wood ThrushHylocichla mustelina
- Yellow-bellied SapsuckerSphyrapicus varius
- Yellow-billed CuckooCoccyzus americanus
Widespread birds also seen here (31)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
- American Goldfinch
- American Kestrel
- American Robin
- Bald Eagle
- Belted Kingfisher
- Black-crowned Night-heron
- Cedar Waxwing
- Chimney Swift
- Common Nighthawk
- Cooper's Hawk
- Double-crested Cormorant
- Eastern Kingbird
- Eastern Screech-owl
- Eurasian Collared-dove
- European Starling
- Great Horned Owl
- Hooded Merganser
- Mourning Dove
- Northern Cardinal
- Northern Flicker
- Northern Mockingbird
- Osprey
- Purple Finch
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Tufted Titmouse
- Turkey Vulture
- Yellow-breasted Chat
- Yellow-crowned Night-heron
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Who uses this plant?
7CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including MS
Genus host records with ranges including MS · Potamogeton
- Elophila gyralisWaterlily Borer Moth
- Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
- Langessa nomophilalisBlack Langessa
- Parapoynx allionealisWatermilfoil Leafcutter, Bladderwort Casemaker
- Parapoynx badiusalisChestnut-Marked Pondweed Moth
- Parapoynx obscuralisObscure Pondweed Moth
- Parapoynx seminealisFloating-Heart Waterlilly Moth, Waterlily Casebearer
17BirdsRecorded eating Potamogeton in Mississippi
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes Mississippi, most records first.
- American CootSeeds. 10 diet records
- MallardSeeds and leaves. 9 diet records
- Lesser ScaupSeeds and leaves. 5 diet records
- Ring-necked DuckSeeds. 5 diet records
- Greater Scaup4 diet records
- RedheadFlowers and leaves. 3 diet records
- Northern ShovelerLeaves and seeds. 3 diet records
- Wood DuckLeaves. 3 diet records
- CanvasbackSeeds. 2 diet records
- SoraLeaves. 2 diet records
Show all 17
- American Wigeon1 diet record
- Common GoldeneyeSeeds. 1 diet record
- Eurasian Wigeon1 diet record
- GadwallLeaves. 1 diet record
- Northern PintailRoots. 1 diet record
- Ruddy DuckSeeds. 1 diet record
- Surf Scoter1 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 Potamogeton 17
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.
- American CootFulica americana
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
- Ring-necked DuckAythya collaris
- Greater ScaupAythya marila
- RedheadAythya americana
- Northern ShovelerAnas clypeata
- Wood DuckAix sponsa
- CanvasbackAythya valisineria
- SoraPorzana carolina
- American WigeonAnas americana
- Common GoldeneyeBucephala clangula
- Eurasian WigeonAnas penelope
- GadwallAnas strepera
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Ruddy DuckOxyura jamaicensis
- Surf ScoterMelanitta perspicillata
Plant details
- Family
- Potamogetonaceae
- Flower color
- Green
- Growth rate
- Rapid
- Growth habit
- Spreads by rhizomes
- Foliage color
- Green
- Fruit begins
- Summer
- Fruit ends
- Summer
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “May to September” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit ends · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth habit · “Spreads by rhizomes” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Rapid” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Height · “Up to 6 feet” · Minnesota Wildflowers
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · Minnesota Wildflowers
- Light · “Partial shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- primary_flower_color · “green” · USDA PLANTS
- Soil · “Water (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Long Leaf Pond Weed
Conservation status
| Mississippi rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| MS 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.
Growing cautions
- Spreads by rhizomes. USDA PLANTS lists its growth form as rhizomatous. USDA PLANTS
For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.
Sources
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Mississippi 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





























