Day 330: Brasenia schreberi is a native species. I thought it was best to settle that point right at the top of this discussion. The common name "Watershield" is more than justified by its ability to cover the water so completely in ponds and slow-moving streams. I was out on an invasive plant patrol on Swofford Pond yesterday, dismayed by having found a large patch of Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) even before I had the 'yak off the car. I shouldn't have been surprised. The plant had established beside the boat ramp, undoubtedly transported there by someone who failed to wash down their water-craft before launching in another lake. That's how many aquatic/riparian invasives are spread: careless hygiene and the "doesn't-mean-me" attitude so prevalent in these pandemic days. I was hoping the invasive might be confined to that one area, but my hopes were dashed when I found it on the little island straight out from the ramp, and then again at a shoreline location. I struggled to pilot the 'yak through the Brasenia so that I could waypoint it with my GPS, often gaining no more than an inch with a paddle stroke. After several such forays, my shoulders objected and I decided instead to make a note in my report that "Jewelweed occurs at multiple locations along the shoreline." Sometimes you just can't get there from here.
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