Bolboschoenus maritimus Herbaceous Alliance
Salt marsh bulrush marshes
Salt marsh bulrush marshes
USDA Ecological Section Map
Summary Information
- Primary Life FormHerb
- Elevation0-2500 m
- State RarityS3
- Global RarityG4
- DistributionCAN: MB, ON, SK. USA: CA, CO, ID, IL, MI, MN, MT, ND, NM, NV, NY, OR, SD, WA, WY (NatureServe)
- Endemic to CaliforniaNo
- Endemic to California Floristic Province and DesertsNo
- Date Added2009/09/01
Characteristic Species
Bolboschoenus maritimus is dominant or co-dominant in the herbaceous layer with Agrostis stolonifera, Argentina egedii, Atriplex prostrata, Bolboschoenus robustus, Chenopodium foliosum, Cotula coronopifolia, Cuscuta salina, Distichlis spicata, Eleocharis macrostachya, Lemna minuta, Sarcocornia pacifica, Sesuvium verrucosum, Spergularia salina and Typha latifolia.
Vegetation Layers
Herbs < 1.5 m; cover is intermittent to continuous.
Membership Rules
- Bolboschoenus maritimus > 50% relative cover in the herbaceous layer (Keeler-Wolf and Vaghti 2000, Klein et al. 2015, Buck-Diaz et al. 2021, Sikes et al. 2021).
- Bolboschoenus maritimus or B. robustus > 50% relative cover in the herbaceous layer, or > 30% relative cover with Sarcocornia (=Salicornia) pacifica (Buck-Diaz et al. 2021, Sikes et al. 2021, Sikes et al. 2023).
Habitats
Seasonally flooded mudflats; tidal brackish marshes. The USACE Wetland Inventory (2018 national list) recognizes Schoenoplectus maritimus as an OBL plant.
Other Habitat, Alliance and Community Groupings
| MCV (1995) | Bulrush series, Bulrush-cattail series |
| NVCS (2009) | Schoenoplectus maritimus semipermanently flooded herbaceous alliance |
| Calveg | Tule-Cattail |
| Holland | Coastal brackish marsh |
| Munz | Coastal salt marsh |
| WHR | Saline emergent wetland |
| CDFW CA Code | 52.112.00 |
National Vegetation Classification Hierarchy
| Formation Class | Mesomorphic Shrub and Herb Vegetation (Shrubland and Grassland) |
| Formation Subclass | Temperate and Boreal Shrubland and Grassland |
| Formation | Temperate and Boreal Salt Marsh |
| Division | Temperate and Boreal Pacific Coastal Salt Marsh |
| Macro Group | North American Pacific Coastal Salt Marsh |
| Group | Temperate Pacific tidal salt and brackish meadow |
Remarks
Bolboschoenus maritimus is an emergent hydrophytic bulrush with leaves that sheathe the lower half of the culm. Inflorescences are simply branched with sessile spikelets. Plants develop rhizomes and corms (Kantrud 1996). The name Scirpus maritimus was used previously for this bulrush, it is now treated as either Schoenoplectus maritimus (USDA-NRCS 2007) or Bolboschoenus maritimus in Flora of North America (Ball et al. 2002), which provides a discussion of the history of these name changes. B. maritimus is a widespread species in North America and worldwide. California plants are ssp. paludosus, and are easily confused with B. robustus, with which it hybridizes when they grow sympatrically.
The alliance occurs in tidal marshes with seasonal flooding at intermediate tidal elevations and relatively high salinity (Keeler-Wolf and Vaghti 2000, Pickart 2006, Klein et al. 2015, Buck-Diaz et al 2021, Sikes et al. 2021). This alliance also occurs in inland marshes in areas with alkaline, brackish, and fresh water, though associated plant species will likely differ. B. maritimus usually dominates in wetter, tidal, brackish to subsaline marshes and ditches, including early successional sites of diked marshes within relict swales and depressions (Baye 2000).
The alliance occurs in tidal marshes with seasonal flooding at intermediate tidal elevations and relatively high salinity (Keeler-Wolf and Vaghti 2000, Pickart 2006, Klein et al. 2015, Buck-Diaz et al 2021, Sikes et al. 2021). This alliance also occurs in inland marshes in areas with alkaline, brackish, and fresh water, though associated plant species will likely differ. B. maritimus usually dominates in wetter, tidal, brackish to subsaline marshes and ditches, including early successional sites of diked marshes within relict swales and depressions (Baye 2000).
Life History Traits of the Principal Species
| Bolboschoenus maritimus | |
|---|---|
| Life forms | Polycarpic perennial; herb; rhizomatous |
| Seed storage | Soil |
| Seed longevity | Long |
| Mode of dispersal | Animal; gravity; water/hydrological |
| Germination agents | Inundation; stratification—winter |
| Mode of sprouting | Underground structures (culms) |
| Survivability after fire/disturbance | Fire-sensitive; no/low sprouter to high sprouter |
| Disturbance-stimulated flowering | No |
| Reproductive range | Life of plant |
| Recruitment | High |
| Regional variation | Low |
Fire Characteristics
Fluvial processes rather than fire primarily disturb stands. Stands are disturbed by different flooding regimes in natural tidal marshes, or by artificial manipulation of brackish marshes through disking, burning, seeding, and shifting flooding regimes.
| Fire return interval | — |
| Seasonality | — |
| Size/extent | — |
| Complexity | — |
| Intensity | — |
| Severity | — |
| Type | — |
| Regional knowledge | — |
Regional Status
This alliance includes tidal stands of B. maritimus. Inland stands of this species are currently considered to be more closely related to the Schoenoplectus (acutus, californicus) alliance.
- Central California Coast (261Aa-d, Af, Ah, Ak-l). Stands are common in brackish marshes of the southern San Francisco Bay with a number of provisional associations (Duke et al. 1999). These stands occur in midmarsh habitats, and they changed over a period of 10 years from salt to brackish marshes in the Coyote Creek watershed and Alviso Slough. Stands of B. maritimus also occur in upper saline portions of the low brackish marsh zone of San Pablo Bay, and they sometimes include B. robustus (Baye et al. 2000). Stands sampled at San Gregorio State Beach and Pescadero Marsh Natural Reserve on the San Mateo Co. coast (Sikes et al. 2021).
- Great Valley (262Aj, Al). Extensively mapped throughout Suisun Marsh. Mixed stands here are commonly encouraged either through planting of locally collected seed or through a highly managed fluctuating flooding regime. Associated alliances include Atriplex prostrata-Cotula coronopifolia and Sarcocornia pacifica (Salicornia depressa) (Keeler-Wolf and Vaghti 2000). Also, several stands have been mapped in the Delta in Convection Slough (Kreb et al. 2019).
- Northern California Coast (263Aa, Ac, Ae, Ah, Aj-l). Sampled stands along Salmon Creek north of Bodega Bay and along the Petaluma River (Klein et al. 2015). Stands at Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge occur where B. maritimus colonizes banks of former tidal sloughs that periodically receive saline water from leaky tide gates or in other areas where saltwater enters (Pickart 2006). Stands also occur in Bolinas Lagoon, Drakes Estero, San Pablo Bay, and Tomales Bay areas in the Point Reyes National Seashore. Expected stands in other subsections based on CCH records (CCH 2017).
- Southern California Coast (261Ba-d, Bf-h, Bj). Stands occur in brackish marshes of intermediate salinity in the section, as at Ballona wetlands (California Coastal Conservancy 2006). Mapped stands in Newport Bay (AECOM 2013). Expected stands in other subsections based on CCH records (CCH 2017).
Management Considerations
Corms and seeds are highly favored by wintering waterfowl. Refuge managers actively maintain stand composition, density, and vigor using planting, controlling water levels, grazing, fire, and mowing (Kantrud 1996).
The rarity rank of this alliance was assessed in March 2021 using NatureServe's Rank Calculator, and no change was made to the S3 ranking. Sea level rise is a significant threat; other threats include dredging, water management practices that favor competitors, and competition from invasive species.
Associations
- Bolboschoenus maritimus [2], [4], [5], [7], [9]
- Bolboschoenus maritimus - Sarcocornia pacifica [1], [3], [4], [6], [7], [8]
- Bolboschoenus maritimus / Sesuvium verrucosum [1]
References
- [1] Keeler-Wolf, T.;Vaghti, M. 2000
- [2] Pickart, A.J. 2006
- [3] Sproul, F.;Keeler-Wolf, T.;Gordon-Reedy, P.;Dunn, J.;Klein, A.;Harper, K. 2011
- [4] Klein, A.;Keeler-Wolf, T.;Evens, J. 2015
- [5] Reyes, E.;Evens, J.;Glass, A.;Sikes, K.;Keeler-Wolf., T.;Winitsky, S.;Johnson, D.;Menke, J.;Hepburn, A. 2020a
- [6] Buck-Diaz, J.;Sikes, K.;Evens, J.M. 2021
- [7] Sikes, K.;Buck-Diaz, J.;Evens, J. 2021
- [8] Duke, R.R.;Boursier, P.J.;Webb, E.;Busnardo, M.;Bourgeois, J.;Dilworth, A. 1999
- [9] Sikes, K.;Buck-Diaz, J.;Vu, S.:Evens, J. 2023
- AECOM, 2013
- Ball, P.W.;Reznicek, A.A. ;Murray, D.F. 2002
- Baye, P.R. 2000
- Baye, P.R.;Faber, P.M.;Grewell, B. 2000
- Boul, R.;Hickson, D.;Keeler-Wolf, T.;Colletti, M.;Ougzin, A. 2018
- California Coastal Conservancy, 2006
- CCH (Consortium of California Herbaria), 2017+
- Kantrud, H.A. 1996
- Kreb, B.;Fintel, E.;Askim, L.;Scholl, L. 2019
- Schlosser, S.;Eicher, A. 2007
- USACE (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers), 2018
- USDA-NRCS (US Department of Agriculture - Natural Resource Conservation Service), Various dates (1999+)
- VegCAMP (CDFW Vegetation Classification and Mapping Program), 2012