Spartina anglica
Common names
spartina hybrid, cordgrass
Biostatus
Exotic
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Grasses
Detailed description
Stiff perennial grass 50–100 cm tall with fleshy rhizomes, forming large dense clumps or swards. Leaf-blades 5–40cm × 5–12 mm flat or inrolled, hairless and narrowed to fine hard tip. Culm erect, 5–8 mm diameter at base, including closely ensheathing leaves. Inflorescence 10–30 cm, erect.
Similar taxa
Spartina anglica can be distinguished from S. alterniflora by its smaller stem size (5–8 mm) cf S. alterniflora stem 8–30 mm, and from S. ×townsendii by the presence of fertile seed (seed is aborted in S. ×townsendii)
Habitat
Aquatic: Emergent. Estuaries, mangroves and other intertidal areas with soft sediment.
Conservation status
Not applicable
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Ecology
Year naturalised
1981
Origin
England
Reason for introduction
Agricultural
Tolerances
Tolerates very saline conditions. Can survive burying.
Life cycle and dispersal
Perennial. Reproduces from seed and rhizome spreading and fragments. Seed is dispersed by wind and water. Livestock, propellers nets etc dislodge rhizome fragments, tidal and current movement, intentional planting. Rhizomes can survive long time at sea, moves long distances.
Wetland plant indicator status rating
Information derived from the revised national wetland plant list prepared to assist councils in delineating and monitoring wetlands (Clarkson et al., 2021 Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Contract Report LC3975 for Hawke’s Bay Regional Council). The national plant list categorises plants by the extent to which they are found in wetlands and not ‘drylands’. The indicator status ratings are OBL (obligate wetland), FACW (facultative wetland), FAC (facultative), FACU (facultative upland), and UPL (obligate upland). If you have suggestions for the Wetland Indicator Status Rating, please contact: [Enable JavaScript to view protected content]
OBL: Obligate Wetland
Almost always is a hydrophyte, rarely in uplands (non-wetlands).
Other information
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
SPAANG