Wetland Plants of the Great Salt Lake

Emergent Wetlands Emergent wetlands are what many people imagine when they think of marshes that fringe lakes and ponds. They are characterized by a mix of open water and vegetation that grows in, but emerges from, the surface of the water. Over the course of a year, emergent wetland water levels can fluctuate considerably between deeply flooded and dry.39 The emergent wetlands surrounding Great Salt Lake (GSL) are often located near large submergent wetlands and encompass approximately 520 km² (129,693 ac). Emergent wetlands are dominated by stout, fast-growing bulrushes, cattails, and large grasses.

Plants Alkali bulrush (Bolboschoenus maritimus, p. 39), hardstem bulrush (Schoenoplectus acutus, p. 40), and Olney’s threesquare (Schoenoplectus americanus, p. 41) are three species of bulrushes that provide essential migratory bird habitat. Each thrives under slightly different flooding and water chemistry conditions, but all reproduce by rhizomes as well as by seeds.40 Rhizomes allow stands of bulrushes to persist under stressful drought or flooding conditions that are characteristic of emergent wetlands.12 Alkali bulrush, the shortest and most valuable bulrush species, grows in expansive, loose stands.34 While it grows best in 5–15 cm (2–6 in) of water, it also benefits from seasonally fluctuating water levels and is capable of withstanding both temporary, deep flooding and 29