Eleocharis engelmannii is a North American plant that was found introduced in a former military base near Heilbronn (southwest Germany) in 2000 and later also in Belgium. At Eleocharis engelmannii and Eleocharis obtusa, both of American origin, the faded flowers remain in the inflorescence, which therefore gets longer and longer, while the withered lower flowers of the native Eleocharis ovata fall off, so that their inflorescence always looks same short.