Disclaimer:

The Nonindigenous Occurrences section of the NAS species profiles has a new structure. The section is now dynamically updated from the NAS database to ensure that it contains the most current and accurate information. Occurrences are summarized in Table 1, alphabetically by state, with years of earliest and most recent observations, and the tally and names of drainages where the species was observed. The table contains hyperlinks to collections tables of specimens based on the states, years, and drainages selected. References to specimens that were not obtained through sighting reports and personal communications are found through the hyperlink in the Table 1 caption or through the individual specimens linked in the collections tables.




Trapa natans
Trapa natans
(water chestnut)
Plants
Exotic

Copyright Info
Trapa natans L.

Common name: water chestnut

Synonyms and Other Names: Trapa bispinosa Roxb., Trapa natans var. natans L., Trapa natans var. bispinosa (Roxb.)

Makino, European water chestnut, water nut, horned water chestnut, water caltrop, bull nut

Taxonomy: available through www.itis.govITIS logo

Identification: According to Crow and Hellquist (2000):

Habit: floating, rooted, aquatic annual

Stems/Roots: submerged, flexuous stem with feathery, adventitious roots that anchor into the mud and extend upwards to the surface of the water where they can photosynthesize.

Leaves: heterophyllous; submerged linear leaves (above the feathery, green roots) and emergent rhomboid leaves arranged in a floating rosette, with each emergent leaf having a slightly inflated petiole (leaf stem) and dentate (tooth-like) leaf margins

Flowers: perfect (hermaphroditic), solitary, small, white flowers with four petals in the center axils of the floating rosette; ovary inferior (epigynous)

Fruits/Seeds: large nut-like drupe with four, orthogonal, sharp spines that develop from hardened sepals; single seed

Look-alikes: Ludwigia sedioides (Humb. & Bonpl.) H.Hara and Ludwigia peploides (Kunth) P.H. Raven

Size: up to 5 m (16 ft) in stem length (Muenscher 1944)

Native Range: Europe, Asia, and Africa (Muenscher 1944; Gleason and Cronquist 1991; Crow and Hellquist 2000).

Hydrologic Unit Codes (HUCs) Explained
Interactive maps: Point Distribution Maps

Nonindigenous Occurrences: Trapa natans occurs throughout the Northeast U.S. and parts of Canada, from the Ottawa River, Ontario to northern portions of the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland, and from the Erie Canal, New York and the Allegheny River, Pennsylvania to the Nashua River, New Hampshire and the Ten Mile River, Rhode Island. The populations historically established in the Potomac River were eradicated in the 1970s (Scott 2011).

Trapa natans was first introduced to North America in the 1870s, where it is known to have been grown in Asa Gray's botanical garden at Harvard University in 1877. By 1879, the Harvard University gardener along with other enthusiasts had deliberately planted T. natans in ponds near the Sudbury and Concord Rivers and it soon became established in those rivers (Countryman 1970). Another initial introduction of T. natans was at Collins Lake near Scotia, NY (in the Hudson River-Mohawk River drainage) around 1884, possibly as an intentional introduction for waterfowl food or as a water garden escapee (Wibbe 1886).

Table 1. States with nonindigenous occurrences, the earliest and latest observations in each state, and the tally and names of HUCs with observations†. Names and dates are hyperlinked to their relevant specimen records. The list of references for all nonindigenous occurrences of Trapa natans are found here.

StateFirst ObservedLast ObservedTotal HUCs with observations†HUCs with observations†
CT199820239Farmington River; Housatonic; Lower Hudson; Outlet Connecticut River; Pawcatuck River; Quinebaug River; Quinnipiac; Shetucket River; Thames
DE187418741Brandywine-Christina
DC189519501Middle Potomac-Anacostia-Occoquan
MD192320244Chester-Sassafras; Gunpowder-Patapsco; Lower Potomac; Middle Potomac-Anacostia-Occoquan
MA1874202315Ashuelot River-Connecticut River; Blackstone River; Charles; Chicopee River; Concord River; Deerfield River; Housatonic; Merrimack River; Middle Hudson; Narragansett; Nashua River; New England Region; Outlet Connecticut River; Quinebaug River; Westfield River
NH199520163Black River-Connecticut River; Nashua River; West River-Connecticut River
NJ200220235Hackensack-Passaic; Middle Delaware-Musconetcong; Raritan; Rondout; Sandy Hook-Staten Island
NY1884202330Bronx; Chaumont-Perch; Chenango; Conewango; Hackensack-Passaic; Hudson-Hoosic; Hudson-Wappinger; Irondequoit-Ninemile; Lake Champlain; Lake Ontario; Lower Genesee; Lower Hudson; Mettawee River; Middle Delaware-Mongaup-Brodhead; Middle Hudson; Mohawk; Niagara River; Northern Long Island; Oak Orchard-Twelvemile; Oneida; Oswegatchie; Oswego; Rondout; Salmon-Sandy; Sandy Hook-Staten Island; Schoharie; Seneca; Southern Long Island; Upper Delaware; Upper Susquehanna
PA1977202316Brandywine-Christina; Conewango; Crosswicks-Neshaminy; Lackawaxen; Lehigh; Lower Delaware; Lower Susquehanna-Swatara; Middle Allegheny-Redbank; Middle Delaware-Mongaup-Brodhead; Middle Delaware-Musconetcong; Schuylkill; Shenango; Upper Allegheny; Upper Delaware; Upper Susquehanna; Upper Susquehanna-Lackawanna
RI200720234Blackstone River; Narragansett; Pawcatuck River; Quinebaug River
VT194220226Black River-Connecticut River; Hudson-Hoosic; Lake Champlain; Lamoille River; Mettawee River; Otter Creek
VA193619451Middle Potomac-Anacostia-Occoquan

Table last updated 4/16/2024

† Populations may not be currently present.


Ecology:

Life history: Sexual reproduction occurs annually with a seed bank (dormancy) of at least 2 years and up to 5 years in stable conditions (Kunii 1988, Menegus et al. 1992, Cozza et al. 1994). Flowers bloom for one day and are self-compatible and apomictic (producing asexually via seed) in variety japonica (Kadono and Schneider 1986). Each T. natans plant has 15 - 20 rosettes, and each rosette can generate up to 20 seeds (Maryland Sea Grant 2012). Seeds overwinter in the benthic sediments and germinate the following spring (Swearingen et al. 2002). Fruit production of T. bispinosa may be lower than for T. natans at similar depths (Dodd and Schad 2021). Asexual reproduction occurs from stolons and stem fragments, typically prior to allocation of resources to fruit production (Groth et al. 1996, Les 2018).

Habitat: shallow (less than 3 meters), nutrient-rich lakes, ponds, canals, and slow-moving rivers and streams, especially bays (Les 2018). Trapa bispinosa may produce more fruits at shallow (<1 m) compared to deep (>2 m) waters while T. natans fruit production seems highest between depths of 1-2 m (Dodd and Schad 2021).

Tolerances: pH range of 6.7 to 8.2 and alkalinity of 12 to 128 mg/L of calcium carbonate (Les 2018).

Community interactions: Flowers are fertilized by generalist insects from Coleoptera and Hemiptera (Kadono and Schneider 1986).

Means of Introduction: Trapa natans was originally introduced by intentional ornamental plantings, followed by escape from ornamental ponds, hitchhiking on waterfowl, and dispersal downstream. It spreads either by the rosettes detaching from their stems and floating or carried by boats and trailers to another area, or more often by the nuts being swept by currents or waves to other parts of the lake or river (Bickley and Cory 1955; Mirick 1996; Hummel and Kiviat 2004). There is speculation that waterfowl may vector the nuts via their plumage, but doubt is placed on the likelyhood of long-distance dispersal by waterfowl due to the weight of the nuts containing viable seed (Les and Mehrhoff 1999).

Status:

Eradicated from the Potomac River in the District of Columbia and Virginia (Carter and Rybicki 1994).

Likely cultivated in Delaware in 1874 (see collection by Albert Commons at NY2376848).

Reports from Kentucky and West Virginia USACE reservoirs were likely mistaken identities (L. Dodd, USACE-ERDC, pers. comm. 2017).

Impact of Introduction:
Summary of species impacts derived from literature review. Click on an icon to find out more...

EcologicalEconomicHuman Health



Ecological impacts

Trapa natans creates nearly impenetrable mats across wide areas of water (Countryman 1978, Winne 1950, Kiviat 1993). Dense mats of T. natans severely limit the passage of light into the water, a critical element of a well-functioning aquatic ecosystem, reducing oxygen levels, which may increase the potential for fish kills (Caraco and Cole 2002, Kornijow et al. 2010). Trapa natans decreases dissolved inorganic nitrogen, potentially reducing eutrophication from runoff waters (Tsuchiya and Iwakuma 1993). It also accumulates heavy metals such as cadmium, nickel, and cobalt (USEPA 1989). Invertebrate, fish, bird, and mammal foraging habitat may be provided by T. natans (Findlay et al. 1989, Yozzo and Odum 1993, Coote et al. 2001, Winne 1950, Kiviat 1993).

Economic and human health impacts

The presence of T. natans mats restricts recreational activities such as swimming, fishing from the shoreline, and the use of small boats are eliminated or severely impeded (Bickley and Cory 1955, Bove and Hunt 1997). Mature T. natans pose a health threat, as the plants’ nuts drift to shore where their sharp spines may hurt bare feet (Gwathmey 1945).

Remarks: Trapa natans has been valued for its nutrional and medicinal qualities in India, China, Hong Kong, Malaya, Thailand, and Russia (Hummel and Kiviat 2004). It was also tested and approved as a cattle feed supplement (Besha and Countryman 1980). Unfortunately, an unrelated edible aquatic plant, Eleocharis dulcis (Burm.f.) Trin. ex Henschel, a sedge in the Cyperaceae family, is also called water chestnut. The corm of E. dulcis is the familiar water chestnut, or Chinese water chestnut, sold in cans and commonly served in Chinese restaurants.

A number of animal species and one fungus species were found to consume Trapa (Pemberton 1999). At least three species of Coleoptera were documented feeding on Trapa leaves at high enough amounts to be considered for biocontrol: the leaf beetles, Galerucella birmanica Jacoby (=G. nipponensis Laboissiera) and G. nymphaeae L., and the weevil, Nanophyes japonica Roelofs (Ban 1983, Kadono and Schneider 1986, Ikeda and Nakasuji 2002, Ding et al. 2006).

Originally placed in Trapaceae, T. natans is now considered in the Lythraceae family based on molecular evidence (Graham 2005).

The Genus Trapa is derived from the Latin calcitrapa meaning "heel snare" (Les 2018).

References: (click for full references)

Baldisserotto, C., L. Ferroni, E. Anfuso, A. Pagnoni, M.P. Fasulo, and S. Pancaldi. 2007. Responses of Trapa natans L. floating laminae to high concentrations of manganese. Protoplasma 231(1—2): 65—82.

Batuik, R., R. Orth, K. Moore, W. Dennison, J. Stevenson, L. Staver, V. Carger, N. Rybicki, R. Hickman, S. Kollar, S. Bieber, and P. Heasly. 1992. Chesapeake Bay Submerged Aquatic Vegetation Habitat Requirements and Restoration Targets: A Techinical Synthesis. US Environmental Protection Agency, Annapolis, MD.

Ban, Y. 1983. An essay on animals foraging Trapa. Bulletin of Water Plant Society, Japan 11:15.

Besha, J.A., and W.D. Countryman. 1980. Feasibility assessment of anaerobic digestion of European water chestnuts (Trapa natans L.). New York State Energy Research and Development Authority 80-13, Albany, NY.

Bickley, W.E., and E.N. Cory. 1955. Water caltrop in the Chesapeake Bay. Association of Southeastern Biologists Bulletin 2:27-28.

Bove, A., and T. Hunt. 1997. Water chestnut: An exotic plant invasion in Lake Champlain. Page 12 in Balcom, N.C, ed. Proceedings of the Second Northeast Conference on Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Species, 18-19 April 1997, Burlington, VT. Connecticut Sea Grant College Program Publication CTSG-97-02. Groton, CT.

Campbell, S., P. Higman, B. Slaughter, and E. Schools. 2010. A Field Guide to Invasive Plants of Aquatic and Wetland Habitats for Michigan. Michigan DNRE, Michigan State University Extension, Michigan Natural Features Inventory. 90 pp.

Caraco, N. F. and J. J. Cole. 2002. Contrasting impacts of a native and alien macrophyte on dissolved oxygen in a large river. Ecological Applications 12(5): 1496—1509.

Carter, V., and N.B. Rybicki. 1994. Invasions and declines of submersed macrophytes in the tidal Potomac River and Estuary, the Currituck Sound-Back Bay system, and the Pamlico River Estuary. Journal of Lake and Reservoir Management 10(1):39-48. http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a293325.pdf#page=36.

Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health. 2015. EDDMapS: Early detection and distribution mapping system. The University of Georgia, Tifton, GA. http://www.eddmaps.org.

Connecticut Aquatic Nuisance Species Working Group (CANSWG). 2006. Connecticut Aquatic Nuisance Species Management Plan. State of Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection. 117 pp.

Coote, T.W., R.E. Schmidt, and N. Caraco. 2001. Use of a periodically anoxic Trapa natans (water-chestnut) bed by fishes in the Hudson River. Page 20 pp in Waldman, J.R., and W.C. Nieder, eds. Final reports of the Tibor T. Polgar fellowship program, 2000. Hudson River Foundation. New York, NY.

Countryman, W.D. 1970. The history, spread and present distribution of some immigrant aquatic weeds in New England. Hyacinth Control Journal 8(2):50-52.

Countryman, W.D. 1978. Nuisance Aquatic Plants in Lake Champlain. New England River Basins Commission, Burlington, VT.

Cozza, R., G. Galanti, M.B. Bitonti, and A.M. Innocenti. 1994. Effect of storage at low temperature on the germination of the waterchestnut (Trapa natans L.). Phyton 34(2):315-320. https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/PHY_34_2_0315-0320.pdf.

Crow, G.E., and C.B. Hellquist. 2000. Aquatic and Wetland Plants of Northeastern North America. Volume 1. Pteridophytes, Gymnosperms and Angiosperms: Dicotyledons. Volume 1. The University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, WI.

DeGoosh, K. 2009. Nor'Easter State Updates for Rhode Island. Northeast Aquatic Plant Management Society. Kingston, RI. Fall 2009:12.

Ding, J., B. Blossey, Y. Du, and F. Zheng. 2006. Galerucella birmanica (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), a promising potential biological control agent of water chestnut, Trapa natans. Biological Control 36(1):80-90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2005.08.001.

Dodd, L.L., and A.N. Schad. 2021. Evaluation of light limitation and depth on germinated seeds of two species of water chestnut cultured under experimental conditions. Aquatic Plant Control Research Program Technical Note ERDC/TN APCRP-CC-23. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Vicksburg, MS. https://doi.org/10.21079/11681/41981.

Falck, M. and S. Garske. 2003. Invasive Non-native Plant Management During 2002. Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC), Odanah, WI. 68 pp.

Field Museum. 2012. Field Museum of Natural History (Botany) Seed Plant Collection. Field Museum, Chicago, IL. http://www.gbif.org/dataset/90c853e6-56bd-480b-8e8f-6285c3f8d42b. Created on 07/11/2012. Accessed on 11/20/2015.

Fernald M.L. 1950. Gray’s Manual of Botany. 8th ed. American Book Company, N.Y. 

Findlay, S., K. Schoeberl, and B. Wagner. 1989. Abundance, composition, and dynamics of the invertebrate fauna of a tidal freshwater wetland. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 8(2):140-148.

Gleason, H.A. 1957. The New Britton and Brown Illustrated Flora of the Northeastern U.S. and Adjacent Canada. New York Botanical Gardens, N.Y.

Gleason, H.A., and Cronquist. 1991. Manual of Vascular Plants of Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada. second edition. The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, New York.

Global Invasive Species Database. 2008. http://www.issg.org/database

Graham, S.A., J. Hall, K. Sytsma, and S. Shi. 2005. Phylogenetic analysis of the Lythraceae based on four gene regions and morphology. International Journal of Plant Sciences 166(6):995-1017.

Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study Team, The. 2012. Inventory of Available Controls for Aquatic Nuisance Species of Concern: Chicago Area Waterway System. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. 46 pp.

Great Lakes Panel of Aquatic Nuisance Species (GLPANS). 2008. Prohibitied Species in the Great Lakes Region. 14 pp.

Groth, A.T., L. Lovett-Doust, and J. Lovett-Doust. 1996. Population density and module demography in Trapa natans (Trapaceae), an annual, clonal aquatic macrophyte. American Journal of Botany 83(11):1406-1415. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1537-2197.1996.tb13934.x.

Gunderson, J. L. and R. E. Kinnunen. 2004. Aquatic Invasive Species – Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (AIS-HAACP) Training Curriculum. Second Edition. Michigan Sea Grant, Minnesota Sea Grant. 91 pp.

Gwathmey, J.H. 1945. Potomac River cleared of floating islands. Maryland Conservationist 22(1):21-23.

Hijikata, Y., A. Yasuhara, and Y. Sahashi. 2005. Effect of an herbal formula containing Ganoderma lucidum on reduction of Herpes zoster pain: a pilot clinical trial. The American Journal of Chinese Medicine 33(4): 517—523.

Hijikata, Y., S. Yamada, and A. Yasuhara. 2007. Herbal mixtures containing the mushroom Ganoderma lucidum improve recovery time in patients with Herpes genitalis and labialis. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 13(9): 985—987.

Hotchkiss, N. 1972. Common Marsh, Underwater and Floating-leaved Plants of the United States and Canada. Dover Publications, Inc, New York.

Hummel, M., and E. Kiviat. 2004. Review of World Literature on Water Chestnut with Implications for Management in North America. Journal of Aquatic Plant Management 42:17-28. http://apms.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/v42p17.pdf.

Hunt, T. 2006. 2005 Water Chestnut Management Program: Lake Champlain and inland waters of Vermont. Aquatic Invaders 17(1):18-19. www.aquaticinvaders.org.

Ikeda, K., and F. Nakasuji. 2002. Spatial structure-mediated indirect effects of an aquatic plant, Trapa japonica, on interaction between a leaf beetle, Galerucella nipponensis, and a water strider, Gerris nepalensis. Population Ecology 44(1):41-47. https://doi.org/10.1007/s101440200005.

iMapInvasives. 2015. iMapInvasives New York. iMapInvaives. www.nyimapinvasives.org. Created on 07/08/2015. Accessed on 07/08/2015.

Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IN DNR). 2012. Aquatic Invasive Species: Water Chestnut. 3pp. Available http://www.in.gov/dnr/files/WATER_CHESTNUT.pdf.

Invasive Plant Atlas of New England (IPANE). 2013. Water Chestnut. Available http://www.eddmaps.org/ipane/ipanespecies/aquatics/Trapa_natans.htm Accessed 2 May 2013.

IPANE. 2001. Invasive Plant Atlas of New England (IPANE) at the University of Connecticut online database. http://invasives.eeb.uconn.edu/ipane/.

Kadono, Y., and E.L. Schneider. 1986. Floral biology of Trapa natans var. japonica. The Botanical Magazine, Tokyo 99:435-439.

Kiviat, E. 1993. Under the spreading water-chestnut. News From Hudsonia 9(1):1-6.

Kornijów, R., D.L. Strayer, and N. F. Caraco. 2010. Macroinvertebrate communities of hypoxic habitats created by an invasive plant (Trapa natans) in the freshwater tidal Hudson River. Fundamental and Applied Limnology Arhiv für Hydrobiologi 176(3): 199—207.

Kunii, H. 1988. Longevity and germinability of buried seeds in Trapa sp. Memoirs of the Faculty of Science, Shimane University 22:83-91. https://ir.lib.shimane-u.ac.jp/608.

Les, D.H., and L.J. Mehrhoff. 1999. Introduction of nonindigenous aquatic vascular plants in southern New England: a historical perspective. Biological Invasions 1(2-3):281-300. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1023/A:1010086232220.

Les, D.H. 2018. Aquatic dicotyledons of North America: ecology, life history, and systematics. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.

Lui, K., M. Butler, M. Allen, E. Snyder, J. da Silva, B. Brownson, and A. Ecclestone. 2010a. Field Guide to Aqautic Invasive Species: Identification, collection and reporting of aquatic invasive in Ontario waters. Minstry of Natural Resources, Ontario, Canada. 201 pp.

Lui, W., J. Zhang, C. Zhang, Y. Wang, and Y. Li. 2010b. Adsorptive removal of Cr (VI) by Fe-modified activated carbon prepared from Trapa natans husk. Chemical Engineering 162(2): 677—684.

Madsen, J.D. 1990. Waterchestnut (Trapa natans L.) research in Watervliet Reservoir, 1989 report. Rensselaer Freshwater Institute, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY.

Mandal, S. M., L. Migliolo, O.L. Franco, and A. K. Ghosh. 2011. Identification of an antifungal peptide from Trapa natans fruits with inhibitory effects on Candida tropicalis biofilm formation. Peptides 32(8): 1741—1747.

Maryland Sea Grant. 2012. Invasive Species in the Chesapeake Watershed: WATER CHESTNUT Trapa natans L. Available http://www.mdsg.umd.edu/issues/restoration/non-natives/workshop/water_chestnut.html. Accessed 2 May 2013.

Menegus, F., L. Cattaruzza, L. Scaglioni, and E. Ragg. 1992. Effects of oxygen level on metabolism and development of seedlings of Trapa natans and two ecologically related species. Physiologia Plantarum 86(1):168-172. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1399-3054.1992.tb01326.x.

Methe B.A., R.J. Soracco, J.D. Madsen, and C.W. Boylen. 1993. Seed production and growth of water chestnut as influenced by cutting. Journal of Aquatic Plant Management 31:154-157. https://apms.org/wp-content/uploads/japm-31-01-154.pdf.

Midwest Invasive Species Information Network (MISIN) and Michigan Natural Features Inventory (MNFI). 2013. Water chestnut (Trapa natans). Available http://www.misin.msu.edu/facts/detail.php?id=185. Accessed 2 May 2013.

Mills, E.L., J.H. Leach, J.T. Carlton, and C.L. Secor. 1993. Exotic species in the Great Lakes: a history of biotic crises and anthropogenic introductions. Journal of Great Lakes Research 19(1):1-54.

Mirick, P.G. 1996. Goose grief. Massachusetts Wildlife 46(2):15-16.

Mishra, S., M. Mohanty, C. Pradhan, H.K. Patra, R. Das, and S. Sahoo. 2013. Physico-chemical assessment of paper mill effluent and its heavy metal remediation using aquatic macrophytes-a case study at JK Paper mill, Rayagada, India. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 185(5): 4347—4359.

Muenscher, W.C. 1937. Water chestnut. Pages 234-243, 246 in A biological survey of the lower Hudson watershed, supplement to 24th annual report (1935). New York Conservation Department. Albany, NY.

Muenscher, W.C. 1944. Aquatic Plants of the United States. Comstock Publishing Company, Inc/Cornell University, Ithaca, NY.

Naylor, M. 2003. Water Chestnut (Trapa natans) in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed: A Regional Management Plan. Maryland Department of Natural Resources. 35 pp.

New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services. 2015. Exotic Aquatic Plant Infestations in New Hampshire. http://des.nh.gov/organization/divisions/water/wmb/exoticspecies/exotic_plant_map.htm. Created on 07/01/2015. Accessed on 02/03/2016.

O'Neill Jr., C. R. 2006. Water Chestnut (Trapa natans) in the Northeast. New York Sea Grant. 4 pp.

Ontario's Invading Species Awareness Program (OISAP). 2013. European Water Chestnut Trapa natans. Available http://www.invadingspecies.com/invaders/plants-aquatic/european-water-chestnut/. Accessed 2 May 2013.

Patten, B.C. 1956. Notes on the biology of Myriophyllum spicatum L. in a New Jersey Lake. Torrey Botanical Club 83(1):5-18.

Pemberton, R.W. 1999. Natural Enemies of Trapa spp. in Northeast Asia and Europe. Biological Control 14(3):168-180. https://doi.org/10.1006/bcon.1998.0687.

Pemberton, R. W. 2002. Water Chestnut. Invasive Plant Research Laboratory, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Available http://www.dnr.state.il.us/stewardship/cd/biocontrol/3waterchestnut.html. Accessed 2 May 2013.

Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (PADCNR). n.d. Invasive Plants in Pennsylvania: European Water Chestnut Trapas natans L. 2 pp.

Pennsylvania Flora Database. 2011. Pennsylvania Flora Project. Morris Arboretum at the University of Pennsylvania (MOAR), Philadelphia, PA. http://www.paflora.org.

Rai, U. N. and S. Sinha. 201. Distribution of metals in aquatic edible plants: Trapa natans (Roxb.) Makino and Ipomoea aquatica Forsk. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 70(3): 241—254.

Rawat, S. K., R.K. Singh, and R. P. Singh. 2012. Remediation of nitrite contamination in ground and surface waters using aquatic macrophytes. Journal of Environmental Biology 33(1): 51—56.

Scott, P. 2011. Capital engineers: The US Army Corps of Engineers in the development of Washington, DC 1790-2004. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Alexandria, VA.
https://www.publications.usace.army.mil/Portals/76/Publications/EngineerPamphlets/EP_870 1 67_2011.pdf.

Seidler, T. (curator). 2015. University of Massachusetts Herbarium, Amherst. University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA. https://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/research/herbarium.

Smithsonian Institution. 2014. National Museum of Natural History specimen collections. Accessed via GBIF data portal, http://www.gbif.org/dataset/5df38344-b821-49c2-8174-cf0f29f4df0d. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. http://www.gbif.org/dataset/5df38344-b821-49c2-8174-cf0f29f4df0d. Created on 03/10/2014. Accessed on 05/19/2014.

State of Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, Office of Water Resources. 2015. Aquatic Invasive Species: (AIS) Plants Documented in RI Freshwaters. http://www.dem.ri.gov/programs/benviron/water/quality/surfwq/aisplant.htm. Created on 04/29/2015. Accessed on 06/26/2015.

Strayer, D. L., C. Lutz, H.M. Malcom, K. Munger, and W. H. Shaw. 2003. Invertebrate communities associated with a native (Vallisneria americana) and an alien (Trapa natans) macrophyte in a large river. Freshwater Biology 48:1938—1949.

Sturtevant, E. L. and U. P. Hedrick. (ed). 1972. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications. 775 pp.

Swearingen, J., K. Reshetiloff, B. Slattery, and S.Zwicker. 2002. Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas 82. pp National Parks Service and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Available http://www.invasive.org/eastern/midatlantic/mysp.html. Accessed 25 April 2013.

Titus, J.E. 1994. Submersed plant invasions and declines in New York. Lake and Reservoir Management 10(1):25-28.

Tsuchiya, T., and T. Iwakuma. 1993. Growth and leaf life-span of a floating-leaved plant, Trapa natans L., as influenced by nitrogen flux. Aquatic Botany 46(3-4):317-324.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). 2011. Aquatic Herbicides. 8 pp.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). 2013. Invasive species profile system. US Army Corps of Engineers, Vicksburg, MS. http://corpslakes.usace.army.mil/employees/invasive/isps/index.cfm.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). 1989. Superfund record of decision, Marathon Battery, NY, third remedial action - final. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Albany, NY.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). 2000. Significant Ongoing and Emerging Issues. 20 pp. Available http://www.epa.gov/lakeerie/lamp2000/Section11.pdf.

University of Alabama Biodiversity and Systematics. 2007. Herbarium (UNA). University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL. http://www.gbif.org/dataset/84f9770e-f762-11e1-a439-00145eb45e9a. Created on 04/03/2007. Accessed on 11/20/2015.

University of Connecticut. 2011. CONN. University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT. http://www.gbif.org/dataset/5288946d-5fcf-4b53-8fd3-74f4cc6b53fc. Created on 09/08/2011. Accessed on 11/20/2015.

Vermont Invasive Exotic Plant Fact Sheet Series: Water Chestnut. Vermont Agency of Natural Resources and The Nature Conservancy, Vermont Chapter. June, 1998

Wells, N.M. 2015. Cranbury: invasive water chestnut species eludes capture. TAPinto.net. New Providence, NJ. https://www.tapinto.net/towns/south-brunswick-cranbury/sections/garden-state-green/articles/cranbury-invasive-water-chestnut-species-eludes. Created on 06/30/2015. Accessed on 07/06/2015.

Wibbe, J.H. 1886. Notes from Schenectady. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 13(3):39. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/650333.

Winne, W.T. 1950. Water chestnut: A foreign menace. Bulletin to the Schools 36(7):230-234.

Yozzo, D.J., and W.E. Odum. 1993. Fish predation on epiphytic microcrustacea in Tivoli South Bay, a Hudson River tidal freshwater wetland. Hydrobiologia 257:37-46.

Author: Pfingsten, I.A., L. Cao, L. Berent. L.O. Wishah, and C.R. Morningstar

Revision Date: 2/15/2022

Peer Review Date: 11/4/2015

Citation Information:
Pfingsten, I.A., L. Cao, L. Berent. L.O. Wishah, and C.R. Morningstar, 2024, Trapa natans L.: U.S. Geological Survey, Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database, Gainesville, FL, https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.aspx?speciesID=263, Revision Date: 2/15/2022, Peer Review Date: 11/4/2015, Access Date: 4/16/2024

This information is preliminary or provisional and is subject to revision. It is being provided to meet the need for timely best science. The information has not received final approval by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and is provided on the condition that neither the USGS nor the U.S. Government shall be held liable for any damages resulting from the authorized or unauthorized use of the information.

Disclaimer:

The data represented on this site vary in accuracy, scale, completeness, extent of coverage and origin. It is the user's responsibility to use these data consistent with their intended purpose and within stated limitations. We highly recommend reviewing metadata files prior to interpreting these data.

Citation information: U.S. Geological Survey. [2024]. Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database. Gainesville, Florida. Accessed [4/16/2024].

Contact us if you are using data from this site for a publication to make sure the data are being used appropriately and for potential co-authorship if warranted.

For general information and questions about the database, contact Wesley Daniel. For problems and technical issues, contact Matthew Neilson.