Water chestnut

The water chestnut is an intrusive plant, which was detected for the first time in Quebec in 1997. Indeed, this water plant hasstarted by invading the south river, a tributary of the river Richelieu and is developing in all the streams of region.
It is a plant native of Europe, Asia and Africa, that is presumed to have been introduced in North America at the end of the 19th century. One it used as house plant for ponds and private water spots. Then in the 1940s, the water chestnut settled down in the Lake Champlain.
This plant is considered as intrusive and harmful for the aquatic environment because it reproduces at a lightning speed. Indeed, every seed of water chestnut produces approximately twelve "bows" which, in turn, can produce about twenty seeds!
So, it suffocates the fauna and the native flora and can consequently provoke their disappearance. The proliferation of this plant also impedes fishing, navigation and hunting.