Similar Species for: Hydrilla verticillata (L.f.) Royle
Elodea canadensis
Hydrilla resembles the native elodea (Elodea canadensis). The main distinguishing feature is that Hydrilla has leaves arranged in whorls of four to eight and elodea has whorls of three leaves.
Egeria densa
Hydrilla resembles the non-native Brazilian elodea or Brazilian water-weed (Egeria densa). The main distinguishing feature is that Hydrilla has leaves arranged in whorls of four to eight and Brazilian water-weed has whorls of four to five leaves. Brazilian water-weed is also considered invasive in Tennessee, ranked as Lesser Threat on TN-EPPC’s plant list.