Coontail
Ceratophyllum demersum · Aquatic plants
Out of the water · Photo: Jose Gutierrez Higa / CC BY
Also called Hornwort, Rigid hornwort
How to identify Coontail
- Stiff, forked leaves in whorls with small teeth on one side
- Leaves crowd at the stem tips like a raccoon tail
- No true roots; floats free or anchors loosely by pale buried stems
Similar plants
Watermilfoils have featherlike leaves rather than forked ones; muskgrass (Chara) is an alga with a musky smell and no teeth.
Growth profile
| Growing season | Overwinters as green stems or dense tips on the bottom, grows quickly as water warms in late spring and peaks in mid to late summer. |
|---|---|
| Starts growing | About 55 to 60 F water; grows in low light |
| Light | Tolerates low light and murky water |
| Depth | 1 to 20 feet |
| How it spreads | Stem fragments and dense winter tips; seeds rare |
| Habitat | Nutrient rich ponds, lakes and slow water, often in warm, still bays with soft mud. |
Why it matters in a lake
Can fill small ponds and form floating mats in nutrient rich water. Takes up nutrients directly from the water and gives good cover for young fish.
Where it is found
- Idaho: Common
- Oregon: Common
- Wyoming: Common
Classification
| Kingdom | Plantae |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Tracheophyta |
| Class | Magnoliopsida |
| Order | Ceratophyllales |
| Family | Ceratophyllaceae |
| Scientific name | Ceratophyllum demersum |
Eurasian watermilfoil
Curly leaf pondweed
Brazilian elodea
Elodea
Sago pondweed
Leafy pondweed
Common bladderwort
White water buttercup
Slender naiad
Horned pondweedNeed a hand?
Is it taking over your lake?
We identify what is growing, map how much of it there is and build a control plan that targets it without harming the rest of the lake.
Idaho / Wyoming (208) 501-4531Oregon (541) 280-0596