48 Nebraskaland • October 2023
ost people reading this probably look at wetlands or
lakes with dense accumulations of cattails without
thinking twice. After all, cattails are native to
Nebraska, and they're a perfectly normal and healthy
part of a wetland ecosystem. Right?
I have bad news. An evil transformation has taken place
right beneath our noses. Cattails are no longer benign
wetland plants that accent the margins of our favorite water
bodies. They've become an aggressive occupying force that
has invaded many of our state's best aquatic habitats. Within
those wetlands and lakes, as well as slower-moving rivers
and streams, this new version of cattail spreads in dense
formations. As it does, it chokes out other wetland vegetation
and smothers the open water habitat needed by waterfowl
and many other wildlife species.
How Did This Happen?
Here's the quick answer: The native broad-leaved cattail
species (Typha latifolia) has been replaced by an invasive
cattail species from the east called narrow-leaved cattail
(Typha angustifolia). The invader can displace the native
species, but it can also hybridize with it, forming an equally, if
not more, aggressive organism (Typha x glauca). The invasion
has progressed so far that it's become diffi cult to fi nd a stand
of native broad-leaved cattails in Nebraska.
Because the two species look very similar and the
invasion has happened gradually, it's happened with very
little fanfare. Unfortunately, that means there's been little
resistance put up by most land managers and landowners,
and many of our state's best wet habitats are rapidly declining
in habitat quality. That's not universally true, of course. In
the Rainwater Basin region, for example, habitat managers
have long been fi ghting against cattails, along with other
serious invaders like reed canarygrass that also form thick
monocultures at the expense of waterfowl and other wildlife
habitat. Other localized skirmishes with cattails are taking
place as well, but not at a scale that has slowed the broader
invasion.
The Sneaky Invasion o
M
Story and photos by Chris Helzer
Narrowleaf cattails at the Nature Conservancy's
Platte River Prairies.
