marsh mermaid-weed

Names and Synonyms

Common Names

• marsh mermaid-weed

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Synonyms

• Trixis palustris

Regional and Traditional Names

Sources: Wikidata, Catalogue of Life

Taxonomical Classification

This plant, known as Prosepinaca palustris, belongs to the kingdom Plantae and the phylum Streptophyta. Within the class Equisetopsida and subclass Magnoliidae, it is classified under the order Saxifragales. Finally, it is a member of the family Haloragaceae within the genus Prosepinaca.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Distribution

This plant exhibits a specific range across parts of North America. In Eastern Canada, its presence is recorded in the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Québec. Moving south from the Canadian border, its distribution extends into the North-Central United States. Specifically, it can be found growing within the state of Illinois. This pattern highlights a distribution that spans both Canadian provinces and American Midwestern territories.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Botanical Identification

Ecology

The ecology of Prosepinaca palustris is characterized by its adaptation to specific coastal and aquatic environments, primarily flourishing within Restinga ecosystems and aquatic vegetation (Vegetação Aquática) habitats. This species exhibits a broad altitudinal distribution, spanning from sea level up to a maximum elevation of 100 m AMSL, though ecological data indicates a significant mean elevational range of 2350 m AMSL, suggesting a complex presence across varying topographical gradients from 0 m AMSL upwards.

Elevational range max:

100 m AMSL

Elevational range mean:

2350 m AMSL

Elevational range min:

0 m AMSL

Habitat :

Restinga, Vegetação Aquática

Life history

The life history of Prosepinaca palustris is characterized by its status as a perennial species, allowing it to persist in its environment over multiple growing seasons. Unlike annuals that complete their life cycle in a single year or biennials that require two years to reach reproductive maturity, this plant maintains a sustained presence through continuous growth cycles. This perennial nature enables it to establish stable populations within its ecological niche, often undergoing seasonal periods of active growth followed by dormancy, which facilitates long-term survival and repeated reproductive efforts across different years.

Lifecycle :

perennial

Morphology

The morphology of Proserpinaca palustris is characterized by its growth form as a non-woody herb, specifically classified as a forb. It exhibits an aquatic to semiaquatic habit, adapted to life in wet environments rather than being purely terrestrial. As a self-supporting plant, it does not function as a climber, liana, or vine, nor does it act as an obligatory or facultative epiphyte, maintaining a terrestrial or semiaquatic existence. Furthermore, the species is an independent organism, showing no parasitic tendencies toward other plants.

Aquatic :

aquatic

Climber :

self-supporting

Epiphyte :

terrestrial

Growth form :

herb

Growth form :

forb

Parasite :

independent

Woodiness :

non-woody

Reproduction

The reproduction of Prosepinaca palustris is characterized by the production of seeds that exhibit a highly consistent mass across the sampled population. Data regarding its reproductive output indicates a uniform seed mass, with a mean value of 0.0064 g. This consistency is further evidenced by the fact that both the maximum and minimum recorded seed masses are identical at 0.0064 g, suggesting a very low variance in the weight of individual seeds produced during its reproductive cycle.

Seed mass mean:

0.0064 g

Sources: Global Inventory of Floras and Traits (GIFT)

Chemicals

Proserpinaca palustris has 1 reported phytochemicals identified across 0 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include quercitrin.

quercitrin

1. Journal of natural products

Conditions

Proserpinaca palustris has 1 reported investigations on conditions identified across 0 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported conditions include 15-lipoxygenase.

15-lipoxygenase

1. Journal of natural products

Preparations

Proserpinaca palustris has 1 reported preparations identified across 0 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported preparations include MeOH.

Meoh

1. Journal of natural products