Wet meadows with Cirsium rivulare are restricted to the eastern part of the Czech Republic. They are most frequent in the flysch mountain ranges of the Western Carpathians and in the Nízký Jeseník and Hrubý Jeseník Mountains of northern Moravia. Like the Angelico sylvestris-Cirsietum oleracei meadows, they are confined to soils that are well supplied with nutrients and bases. On the flysch bedrock, they are frequently found around springs and in seepage habitats.