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Lagarosiphon major (Ridley) Moss (ITIS)
Oxygen weed, Lagarosiphon, African elodea, curly waterweed
Southern Africa (McGregor and Gourlay 2002)
Not introduced
Spread throughout the world as an aquarium plant (National Heritage Trust 2003)
Has invaded New Zealand and Europe. It can inhabit freshwater lakes, dams and slow moving streams. Forms dense mats that block sunlight, thereby killing native aquatic plant and animal species, which could rival the harmful effects of hydrilla (Csurhes and Edwards 1998)
Federally Regulated
Includes species listed as a Federal Noxious Weed under the Plant Protection Act, which makes it illegal in the U.S. to import or transport between States without a permit.
Images
Videos
Google. YouTube; RTÉ Ireland. Eco Eye.
This beautiful episode opens on Lough Corrib at sunrise. Anja sees first-hand the devastating and costly impacts of a new arrival to an existing ecosystem, Lagarosiphon Major a pond weed has taken hold in the waterbody. Part 1 of 4
Selected Resources
The section below contains highly relevant resources for this species, organized by source. Or, to display all related content view all resources for Oxygen Weed.
Partnership
Centre for Invasive Species Solutions; Atlas of Living Australia; Australian Government. Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment.
Federal Government
DOI. Fish and Wildlife Service.
See also: Ecological Risk Screening Summaries for more species summaries
Academic
University of Florida. IFAS. Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.
Citations
Csurhes, S. and R. Edwards. 1998. Potential Environmental Weeds in Australia: Candidate Species for Preventative Control (PDF | 1.3 MB). Environment Australia.
Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Lagarosiphon major. [Accessed Mar 5, 2015].
McGregor, P.G. and H. Gourlay. 2002. Assessing the Prospects for Biological Control of Lagarosiphon (Lagarosiphon major (Hydrocharitaceae)) (PDF | 109 KB). Wellington, N.Z.: Department of Conservation. DOC Science Internal Series 57.
National Heritage Trust. 2003. Lagarosiphon (Lagarosiphon major) Weed Management Guide. Department of the Environment and Heritage and the CRC for Australian Weed Management.