Description
Potentially Misidentified Species- All are introduced except R. verticillatus (Swamp Dock). Rumex patientia (Patience Dock) has not been reported from intertidal habitats in Chesapeake Bay.
Taxonomy
| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family | Genus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plantae | Magnoliophyta | Magnoliopsida | Polygonales | Polygonaceae | Rumex |
Synonyms
Invasion History
Chesapeake Bay Status
| First Record | Population | Range | Introduction | Residency | Source Region | Native Region | Vectors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1830 | Established | Stable | Introduced | Boundary Resident | Europe | Eurasia | Shipping(Dry Ballast), Agriculture(Agricultural Weed) |
History of Spread
Rumex obtusifolius (Blunt-Leaved Dock), a Eurasian native apparently was rare or absent in North America through the 18th century. It was not among colonial herbarium specimens examined by Brown et al. (1987), and was not listed by Walter (1788) for the Carolinas, or by Pursh (1814) for the Northeast U.S. However, it was reported by Nuttall (1818) from 'woods and fields' and Gray (1848) as 'a rather common weed' in the Northeast, so it was probably introduced by the early 1800s. It was first collected in Great Lakes basin in MI (1837-1840) (Mills et al. 1993). Mills et al. (1997) give the first record for the Hudson River Basin as 1927, but this plant was probably introduced much earlier (Mills et al. 1997). This weed is now found throughout the U.S. and southern Canada (Gleason and Cronquist 1991).
Rumex obtusifolius was listed from Washington D.C. but not Baltimore in the 1830's (Aikin 1837; Brereton 1830). It is included in all subsequent Washington D.C.-Baltimore floras (Hitchcock and Standley 1919; Potomac-side Naturalists Club 1876; Sollers 1888; Ward 1881). It is now widespread and common throughout MD and VA (Brown and Brown 1984; Harvill et al. 1992). Rumex obtusifolus is widespread in uplands, but is less common in wet environments than R. crispus (Grime et al. 1988). Rumex obtusifolius was reported to occur 'near salt marsh, St. Marys County' in a list of intertidal plants of MD (Krauss et al. 1971), and on a list of typical MD brackish-marsh plants given in the introduction of Brown and Brown (1984). Plants of R. obtusifolius were found in an overwash zone between a brackish marsh and beach in Shady Side MD (Fofonoff, personal observation).
History References - Aikin 1837; Brereton 1830; Brown and Brown 1984; Fernald 1950; Gleason and Cronquist 1991; Gray 1848; Grime et al. 1988; Harvill et al. 1992; Hitchcock and Standley 1919; Mills et al. 1993; Mills et al. 1997; Nuttall 1818; Potomac-Side Naturalist Club 1876; Pursh 1814; Sollers 1888; Walter 1788
Invasion Comments
Ecology
Environmental Tolerances
| For Survival | For Reproduction | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum | Maximum | Minimum | Maximum | |
| Temperature (ºC) | ||||
| Salinity (‰) | 0.0 | 0.0 | ||
| Oxygen | ||||
| pH | ||||
| Salinity Range | fresh-meso |
Age and Growth
| Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Typical Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Maximum Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Maximum Longevity (yrs) | ||
| Typical Longevity (yrs |
Reproduction
| Start | Peak | End | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reproductive Season | |||
| Typical Number of Young Per Reproductive Event |
|||
| Sexuality Mode(s) | |||
| Mode(s) of Asexual Reproduction |
|||
| Fertilization Type(s) | |||
| More than One Reproduction Event per Year |
|||
| Reproductive Startegy | |||
| Egg/Seed Form |
Impacts
Economic Impacts in Chesapeake Bay
Rumex obtusifolius (Blunt-Leaved Dock) is a common agricultural weed in the watershed (Brown and Brown 1984), but has no reported impacts in the Chesapeake Bay proper.
References- Brown and Brown 1984
Economic Impacts Outside of Chesapeake Bay
Rumex obtusifolius (Blunt-Leaved Dock) is now widespread through most temperate countries. It is 'more troublesome than R. c. (Rumex crispus) as a weed of pastures.' (Grime et al. 1988). However, specific impacts in tidal wetlands have not been reported, to our knowledge.
References- Grime et al. 1988
Ecological Impacts on Chesapeake Native Species
Rumex obtusifolius (Blunt-Leaved Dock) is a common weed of upland disturbed areas, but has only a few reports from the intertidal zone. It is presumed to have no impacts on native Chesapeake Bay biota.
Ecological Impacts on Other Chesapeake Non-Native Species
Rumex obtusifolius (Blunt-Leaved Dock) is a common weed of upland disturbed areas, but has only a few reports from the intertidal zone. It is presumed to have no impact on exotic Chesapeake Bay biota.
References
Aikin, W. E. A. (1837) Catalogue of phenogamous plants and ferns, native or naturalized, growing in the vicinity of Baltimore, Maryland., Transactions of the Maryland Academy of Sciences and Literature 1: 55-91Brereton, J. A. (1830) Prodromus of the Flora Columbiana, , Washington, D.C.. Pp.
Brown, Melvin L.; Brown, Russell G. (1984) Herbaceous Plants of Maryland, , College Park. Pp.
Brown, Melvin L.; Reveal, J. L; Broome, C. R.; Frick, George F. (1987) Comments on the vegetation of colonial Maryland, Huntia 7: 247-283
Byers, James E. (2002) Physical habitat attribute mediates biotic resistence to non-indigenous species invasion, Oecologia 130: 146-156
Fernald, Merritt L. (1950) Gray's Manual of Botany, In: (Eds.) . , New York. Pp.
Gleason, Henry A.; Cronquist, Arthur (1991) Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada, In: (Eds.) . , Bronx, New York. Pp.
Gray, Asa (1848) A manual of botany of the northern United States., In: (Eds.) . , Boston. Pp.
Grime. J. P.; Hodgson, J. G.; Hunt, R. (1988) Comparative plant ecology: A functional approach to common British species, , London. Pp.
Harvill, A. M.; Bradley, Ted R.; Stevens, Charles E.; Wieboldt, Thomas F.; Ware, Donna M. E.; Ogle, Douglas W.; Ramsey, Gwynn W.; Fleming, Gary P. (1992) Atlas of the Virginia Flora, , Burkeville, VA. Pp.
Hitchcock, A. S.; Standley, P. C. (1919) Flora of the District of Columbia and Vicinity., In: (Eds.) . , Washington, D. C.. Pp.
Kartesz, John T. (1994) A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland., In: (Eds.) . , Portland OR. Pp.
Krauss, R.W.; Brown, R. G.; Rappleye, R. D.; Owens, A. B.; Shearer, C.; Hsiao, E.; Reveal, J. (1971) Checklist of plant species occurring within the hightide limits of the Chesapeake Bay, and its tributaries., , College Park, Maryland. Pp.
Mills, Edward L.; Leach, Joseph H.; Carlton, James T.; Secor, Carol L. (1993) Exotic species in the Great Lakes: a history of biotic crises and anthropogenic introductions., Journal of Great Lakes Research 19: 1-54
Mills, Edward L.; Scheuerell, Mark D.; Carlton, James T.; Strayer, David (1997) Biological invasions in the Hudson River: an inventory and historical analysis., New York State Museum Circular 57: 1-51
Nuttall, Thomas (1818) The genera of North American plants, and a catalogue of the species, to the year 1817., , Philadelphia:. Pp.
Pursh, Frederick (1814) Flora Americae Septentrionalis or, a Systematic Arrangement and Description of the Plants of North America, , Hirschburg. Pp.
Resource Management Inc. (1993) National list of plant species that occur in wetlands., , Minneapolis.. Pp.
Sollers, Basil (1888) Check list of plants compiled for the vicinity of Baltimore., , Baltimore. Pp.
Tatnall, Robert R. (1946) Flora of Delaware and the Eastern Shore, , Wilmington. Pp.
Walter, Thomas (1788) Flora Caroliniana, , London. Pp.