ABSTRACT
Typha latifolia occurs in Alaska, all provinces and territories of Canada, all of the conterminous United States, Mexico, and Guatemala. Submersed cattail seedlings have flaccid leaves, the upper portions of which may float. The pointed seeds of T. latifolia can become embedded in the skin of fish, and accordingly transported. Cattails are often considered undesirable by wildlife managers because of their ability to take over marshes and other freshwater environments, excluding other plants. They tend to block or silt up irrigation and drainage canals, and obstruct commercial and recreational activities in lakes, ponds, and marshes. Cattail marshes were so important to North American Indians that tribal wars took place over their control. Some societies in Central and South America used cattail plants in diverse ways and developed a very high level of dependence on them. Cattails are one of the very few plant species that produce pollen in sufficient quantity that it is used as food.
