Low Spearwort
Ranunculus pusillus
Found in marshes, ditches, other wet habitats. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 82%
- Light
- Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Moist to standing water
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Annual
- Bloom
- April to June
Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Leaves
This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.
Recorded in 45 Alabama counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground
Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.
Who uses this plant?
3CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL
Genus host records with ranges including AL · Ranunculus
- Herpetogramma pertextalisBold-Feathered Grass Moth
- Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
- Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
20BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Ranunculus
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
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
13BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Ranunculus
- Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
- Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
- Calcarius lapponicusLapland Longspur
- Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
- Centrocercus urophasianusGreater Sage-Grouse
- Cygnus buccinatorTrumpeter Swan
- Dendrocygna bicolorFulvous Whistling-Duck
- Fulica americanaAmerican Coot
- Lagopus leucuraWhite-tailed Ptarmigan
- Lagopus mutaRock Ptarmigan
Show all 13
- Mareca americanaAmerican Wigeon
- Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
- Plectrophenax nivalisSnow Bunting
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
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Ranunculaceae
- Flower color
- Yellow
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “April to June” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Yellow” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Life cycle · “Annual” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Light · “Partial shade; Full shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- primary_flower_color · “yellow” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Soil · “Moist; Water; Wet (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Small Spearwort
Conservation status
| Alabama rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| AL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Alabama Plant Atlas
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- 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
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications