Bed of floating pondweed, Harney County
(John A. Christy, Oregon Biodiversity Information Center)

Aquatic beds (lakes, ponds, and rivers; see also salt marshes, brackish marshes) are composed of mostly submerged vegetation, the upper portions of which may float at the surface. They occur in nearshore areas along the coast, in estuaries, and in rivers, ponds, lakes, and sloughs on most topographic surfaces throughout the state. Plants may be rooted, suspended in the water column, or free-floating. Aquatic beds may be perennially flooded, tidal, or only seasonally flooded. They include subtidal kelp forests, intertidal eelgrass beds, and often dense stands of native or exotic species that clog waterways and annoy swimmers and boaters. They provide critical food and cover for fish, amphibians, and invertebrates, and are usually directly linked to riverine and emergent wetlands by hydrology, chemistry, and food webs. A large variety of invertebrates and vertebrates use both aquatic beds and emergent wetlands during part of their life cycles. Since 1850, much aquatic bed habitat has been lost to river channelization, siltation, and filling for agriculture or urban development.

Aquatic Beds

Habitat: Estuaries, rivers, streams, lakes, and ponds
Water regime: Subtidal, intertidal, or permanently to seasonally flooded
Water chemistry: Fresh

Ecoregion*: BM = Blue Mountains, BR = Northern Basin and Range, CB = Columbia Basin, CR = Coast Range, EC = East Cascades, KM = Klamath Mountains, WC = West Cascades, WV = Willamette Valley
	Scientific & Common Name	Global & State Rank	Ecoregion*
	Azolla (filiculoides, mexicana) Aquatic Vegetation Pacific Mosquito Fern, Mexican Mosquito Fern (Christy 2004: 68; NS)	G4S4	CR, WV
	Brasenia schreberi Western Aquatic Vegetation Water-shield (Christy 2004: 72; NS)	G4S3	CR, KM
	Callitriche heterophylla Aquatic Vegetation [Provisional] Different-leaved water-starwort (Christy 2004: 75)	G4S4	CR, KM, WC, WV
	Callitriche verna Aquatic Vegetation [Provisional] Spring water-starwort (Crowe et al. 2004: 69)	G4S4	CR, EC, KM, WV
	Ceratophyllum demersum Western Aquatic Vegetation Coontail (Christy 2004: 101; Crowe et al. 2004: 69; NS)	G5S5	CR, EC, KM, WV
	Elodea canadensis Aquatic Vegetation Waterweed (Christy 2004: 116; Crowe et al. 2004: 70; NS)	G5S5	CR, EC, WC, WV
	Fontinalis (antipyretica, neomexicana) Nonvascular Aquatic Vegetation Fountain moss (Christy 2004: 152; NS)	G5S5	CR, EC, WC, WV
	Lemna minor Aquatic Vegetation Duckweed (Murray 2000: 22; Christy 2004: 127; NS)	G5S5	CB, CR, BM, BR, EC, KM, WC, WV
	Myriophyllum hippuroides Aquatic Vegetation [Provisional] Western water-milfoil bed	G3S2	WV
	Myriophyllum sibiricum Aquatic Vegetation Siberian water-milfoil (NS)	G4S3	WC
	Nuphar polysepala Aquatic Vegetation Yellow pond-lily (Murray 2000: 23; Christy 2004: 132; Crowe et al. 2004: 62;Wells 2006: 156; Odion et al. 2013: 64; NS)	G5S5	BM, BR, CR, EC, KM, WC, WV
	Potamogeton diversifolius Aquatic Vegetation Diverse-leaved pondweed (Crowe et al. 2004: 72; NS)	G4S3	EC
	Potamogeton gramineus Aquatic Vegetation [Provisional] Variable pondweed (Crowe et al. 2004: 72)	G5S5	BM, BR, CB, CR, EC, KM, WV, EC
	Potamogeton natans Aquatic Vegetation Floating-leaved pondweed (Murray 2000: 24; Christy 2004: 136; Crowe et al. 2004: 73; NS)	G5S5	CR, EC, KM, WC, WV
	Ranunculus aquatilis - Callitriche verna Aquatic Vegetation Water crowfoot - vernal water starwort (Christy 2004: 137; Crowe et al. 2004: 60; NS)	G5S5	BM, BR, CB, CR, EC, KM, WC, WV
	Ranunculus aquatilis - Callitriche palustris Herbaceous Vegetation Water crowfoot - vernal water starwort	G5S5	BM
	Ranunculus lobbii Aquatic Vegetation [Provisional] Lobb's water-buttercup (Titus 1996-1998: 4)	G3S2	KM, WV
	Schoenoplectus subterminalis Aquatic Vegetation [Provisional] Water clubrush (Kunze 1994: 24)	G4S3	CR
	Utricularia macrorhiza Aquatic Vegetation [Provisional] Common bladderwort (Christy 2004: 150)	G5S3	CR, WC, WV
	Veronica americana Aquatic Vegetation [Provisional] American brooklime (Crowe et al. 2004: 63)	G3S3	BM, EC, WV

Authored by John A. Christy, Wetlands Ecologist, (ORBIC) Oregon Biodiversity Information Center (2012 rev. 2017)