Devil's Beggarticks

Bidens frondosa

Found in fields, pastures, wet meadows, swamp forests, ditches. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you

Keystone

Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height: About 4 feet
Light: Part shade
Soil moisture: Moist to wet

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Bidens frondosa — bloom photograph — (c) Douglas Goldman, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Original photograph

At a glance

Life cycle: Annual
Bloom: June to October
Fruiting season: Summer to fall

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Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 47 Alabama counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 3

Regional / representative. Shown: Southern coastal swamps, Florida to Virginia; state not identified, a neighboring state.Loblolly bay in a coastal swamp, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

Wet meadows

Open, wet, grassy or sedgy ground that is not a bog.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 117 animals.

Orange-crowned Warbler
Vermivora celata
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Orchard Oriole
Icterus spurius
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Osprey
Pandion haliaetus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Ovenbird
Seiurus aurocapilla
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Pileated Woodpecker
Dryocopus pileatus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Pine Siskin
Carduelis pinus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Prothonotary Warbler
Protonotaria citrea
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Purple Finch
Carpodacus purpureus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Melanerpes carolinus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Sitta canadensis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Red-headed Woodpecker
Melanerpes erythrocephalus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Red-shouldered Hawk
Buteo lineatus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Red-tailed Hawk
Buteo jamaicensis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Red-winged Blackbird
Agelaius phoeniceus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Ring-necked Duck
Aythya collaris
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Regulus calendula
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Archilochus colubris
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Ruffed Grouse
Bonasa umbellus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Rusty Blackbird
Euphagus carolinus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Scarlet Tanager
Piranga olivacea
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Accipiter striatus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Song Sparrow
Melospiza melodia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Sora
Porzana carolina
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Spotted Sandpiper
Actitis macularius
Birds. 1 shared habitat

All wildlife of Alabama

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

24CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Bidens

Cecropterus lyciadesHoary Edge
Cecropterus pyladesNorthern Cloudywing
Cirrhophanus trianguliferGoldenrod Stowaway, Beggarticks Seedcropper
Condica concisaConcise Groundling
Condica confederataThe Confederate
Condica cupentiaSplotched Groundling
Condica mobilisMobile Groundling
Dichomeris juncidellaOrange-Dotted Dichomeris
Epiblema abruptanaAbrupt Epiblema
Epiblema otiosanaBidens Borer Moth

Show all 24

Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
Homoeosoma electellaSunflower Moth
Lorita scarificataChrysanthemum Flower Borer
Nathalis ioleDainty Sulphur, Dwarf Yellow
Palthis asopialisFaint-Spotted Palthis
Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
Platynota stultanaOmnivorous Leafroller
Pyrausta tyralisCoffee-Loving Pyrausta
Scopula aemulataRival Wave
Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
Urbanus proteusLong-Tailed Skipper, Bean Leaf Roller

Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)

76BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Bidens

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0

8Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Bidens

Andrena aliciae
Andrena chromotricha
Dianthidium curvatum
Dieunomia heteropoda
Megachile inimica
Megachile parallela
Megachile xylocopoides
Melissodes denticulatus

Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0

10BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Bidens

Acanthis flammeaCommon Redpoll
Aix sponsaWood Duck
Anas platyrhynchosMallard
Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
Colinus virginianusNorthern Bobwhite
Dendrocygna bicolorFulvous Whistling-Duck
Fulica americanaAmerican Coot
Plectrophenax nivalisSnow Bunting
Porzana carolinaSora
Rallus limicolaVirginia Rail

Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Flies 4

Exoprosopa decora
Peleteria robusta
Spallanzania hesperidarum
Tropidia albistylum

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Other wasps 1

Sphex vulgaris

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Adult butterflies / moths · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Asteraceae
Flower color: Yellow
Growth rate: Rapid
Growth habit: Single crown
Foliage color: Green
Fruit begins: Summer
Fruit ends: Fall

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “June to October” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ) · Carolinas and Georgia
Flower color · “Yellow” · USDA PLANTS (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs) · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Fruit ends · “Fall” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Growth habit · “Single crown” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Growth rate · “Rapid” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Height · “About 4 feet” · USDA PLANTS (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Minnesota Wildflowers, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ) · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Life cycle · “Annual” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Light · “Part shade” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center (ranked first; Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differs)
Soil · “Wet; Wet-mesic” · Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide · Nursery cultural guide; height in flower; moisture categories retained as printed

Also known as

Devils Beggar Ticks

Conservation status

Alabama rank	SNR
Global rank	G5
AL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Devil's Beggarticks

At a glance

Natural habitats

Also found with this plant

Who uses this plant?

Plant details

Conservation status

Will it fit your yard?

Sources

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