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Coontail Facts

Coontail Facts
Coontail is aquatic plant that belongs to the hornwort family. It originates from North America, but it can be found all over the world except on Antarctica today. Coontail is classified as weed in Australia and New Zealand. It grows in slow-flowing streams and rivers, lakes, ponds, lagoons and irrigated ditches. Coontail grows in waters rich in nutrients, on temperature of 15 to 30 degrees of Celsius, in the partial shade. Increased level of nitrogen and phosphorus (in waters polluted with fertilizers and sanitary waste) leads to rapid growth of coontail, which quickly colonizes entire area. People cultivate coontail mostly in ornamental purposes.
Interesting Coontail Facts:
Coontail can reach 3 to 10 feet in length. It has elongated stem with numerous side shoots which create impression of large, bushy mass.
Coontail does not have root and it floats freely. It often grows in dense colonies.
Coontail produces leaves arranged in whorls of 6 to 12. Leaves are elongated, simple or divided in 2 to 8 filaments with toothed edges. They are olive-green colored and have stiff, bristly texture.
Coontail is monoecious plant, which means that individual male and female flowers develop on the same stem. Flowers of coontail are small, brown-green colored. They grow from the axils of leaves.
Coontail blooms during the summer and autumn. Unlike other aquatic plants which open their flowers above water, coontail performs pollination under the water with a help of water currents. Male flowers release pollen which travels toward the bottom of the water and falls on the surface of female flowers on its way down.
Fruit of coontail is small, ovoid, slightly flattened, single-seeded achene with three spines on the surface.
Coontail propagates via seed, fragmentation of the stem and turions (overwintering buds).
Coontail floats on the surface of the water during the warm months of the years and sinks to the bottom during the winter.
Fruit of coontail is important source of food for ducks, while waterfowls and grass carp eat entire plant.
Coontail provides shelter for numerous animals (fish, snails, insects...) throughout the year. Fish like to spawn among dense, filamentous leaves of coontail.
Coontail releases substances which prevent growth of phytoplankton and cyanobacteria.
Branches of coontail covered with leaves create impression of raccoon's tail, hence the name "coontail".
Scientific name of the plant "Ceratophyllum" originates from two Greek words: "keras" which means "horn" and "phyllum" which means "leaf". Name refers to the horned edges of leaves of this plant.
Coontail is used in decorative purposes in cold and tropical aquariums. It is also used in the aquatic gardens to increase production of oxygen in the water.
Coontail is perennial plant, which means that it can survive more than 2 years in the wild.


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