Lycopodiella inundata

Inundated Clubmoss

Inundated Clubmoss
Photo courtesy Wisconsin State Herbarium
and Emmet J. Judziewicz

Flora, fauna, earth, and sky...
The natural history of the northwoods

Name:

• Lycopodiella, from the Greek, luko (luko), "wolf", podos (podos), "foot", and ellus, a diminutive suffix; hence "little wolf's foot"
• inundata, from the Latin, inundo, "to overflow, inundate"
• Common name from its preferred, boggy habitat
• Other common names include Northern Bog Clubmoss, Lycopodielle Inondé (Qué), Marsh Clubmoss (UK), Strandlummer (Swe), Myrkråkefot (Nor), Liden Ulvefod (Dan), Konnanlieko (Fin), Sumpf-Bärlapp (Ger), Moeraswolfsklauw (NL), Plavunka zaplavovana (Cz), Lycopode des Tourbières (Fr)

Taxonomy:

• Kingdom Plantae, the Plants
  • Division Lycopodiophyta, the Club Mosses
    • Class Lycopodiopsida, the Club Mosses
      • Order Lycopodiales, the Club Mosses
        • Family Lycopodiaceae, the Club Mosses
          • Genus Lycopodiella, Clubmoss
• Taxonomic Serial Number: 503609
• Also known as Lepidotis inundata, Lycopodium inundatum

Description:

• A creeping, rhizomatous clubmoss of bogs and marshes; height to 8".
• Roots
• Horizontal stems flat bottomed, creeping on surface, often arching, flat on ground, 1"-4¾"
• Shoots Vertical stems widely spaced; unbranched with bushy top. (excluding leaves) slender, .5mm-.9mm in diameter
• Leaves spreading, upcurved, 1/4" long, narrow and awl shaped, 5--6 X 0.5--0.7 mm, margins entire.
• Peduncles 1(--2) per plant, 3.5--6 X 0.4--0.7 cm;
• Cone replaced by a bushy top at the tip of upright stem. strobilus length 1/2--1/3 total height; leaves spreading, 5--6 X 0.5--0.8 mm, margins rarely toothed. Strobili 10--20 X 2.5--5.5 mm.
• Sporophylls spreading to spreading-ascending, 4.5--5 X 0.5--0.9 mm, margins rarely toothed.

Identification:

• Identifiable as
• Distinguished from
• Field Marks

• Club Moss Identification for Amateurs

  1. Our North Country clubmosses are divided into four genera, based upon their leaves and cones.
     • Clubmosses with flat, scale-like leaves belong to the genus Diphasiastrum, the so-called Ground Cedars, represented by three species in the North Country. All other clubmosses in our area have pointed leaves and a bristly appearance.
  • Clubmosses without cones belong to the genus Huperzia, represented by four species in the North Country.
  • A clubmoss with a cone which is merely a somewhat broader extension of the shoot belongs to the genus Lycopodiella, represented by a single species in the North Country.
  • Clubmosses with distinct cones and bristly leaves belong to the genus Lycopodium, the so-called Ground Pines, represented by six species in the North Country.

Distribution:

• Alaska to Newfoundland, south to California, Idaho, Montana, Saskatchewan, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Virginia.
• Also Eurasia.

Habitat:

• Bogs, lakeshores, marshes, lichens, borrow pits
• Cool, shaded bogs; pond and stream edges; open moist places
• Acidic peat, mosses

Fire:

Associates:

• Trees:
• Shrubs:
• Herbs:
• Ground Covers:
• Mammals:
• Birds:

History:

Uses:

Reproduction:

• By spore and vegetatively by rhizome
• Clonal, reproducing primarily by sprouting from rhizomes. It also produces spores and a subterranean, mycorrhizal gametophyte.

Propagation:

• Very difficult; division may be the most successful method.

Cultivation:

• Hardy to USDA Zone 3 (average minimum annual temperature -40ºF)
• Clubmosses can make attractive ground covers, but they do not transplant well.

Links:

• Den Virtuella Floran, Naturhistoriska riksmuseet, Stockholm

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