Little River Water Plantain
Sagittaria secundifolia
Found in crevices in sandstone bedrock in streambeds. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 47%
- Light
- 4 or more hours of direct sun
- Soil moisture
- Moist to wet
No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
Federally threatened. Excluded from routine garden suggestions. Consult conservation guidance before obtaining or planting this species. Plant caution source
Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.
At a glance
Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves · Bloom
This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.
Recorded in 4 Alabama counties.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 98 animals.
- Yellow-bellied SapsuckerSphyrapicus varius
- Yellow-billed CuckooCoccyzus americanus
- American WoodcockScolopax minor
- Baltimore OrioleIcterus galbula
- Barred OwlStrix varia
- Black VultureCoragyps atratus
- Blue-winged WarblerVermivora pinus
- Brown ThrasherToxostoma rufum
- CanvasbackAythya valisineria
- Eastern Wood-peweeContopus virens
- Golden-winged WarblerVermivora chrysoptera
- Hermit ThrushCatharus guttatus
- Hooded WarblerWilsonia citrina
- Least FlycatcherEmpidonax minimus
- Lincoln's SparrowMelospiza lincolnii
- Orange-crowned WarblerVermivora celata
- OvenbirdSeiurus aurocapilla
- Pileated WoodpeckerDryocopus pileatus
- Red-bellied WoodpeckerMelanerpes carolinus
- Red-shouldered HawkButeo lineatus
- Ruby-throated HummingbirdArchilochus colubris
- Scarlet TanagerPiranga olivacea
- Snowy EgretEgretta thula
- Swainson's WarblerLimnothlypis swainsonii
Widespread birds also seen here (40)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
- American Crow
- American Goldfinch
- American Kestrel
- American Robin
- Bald Eagle
- Bank Swallow
- Belted Kingfisher
- Black-crowned Night-heron
- Blue Grosbeak
- Chimney Swift
- Chipping Sparrow
- Common Grackle
- Common Nighthawk
- Common Yellowthroat
- Cooper's Hawk
- Double-crested Cormorant
- Eastern Kingbird
- Eastern Screech-owl
- Eastern Towhee
- Eurasian Collared-dove
- European Starling
- Fish Crow
- Great Crested Flycatcher
- Great Horned Owl
- Hooded Merganser
- Mourning Dove
- Northern Cardinal
- Northern Flicker
- Northern Mockingbird
- Osprey
- Purple Finch
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Tree Swallow
- Tufted Titmouse
- Turkey Vulture
- Yellow-breasted Chat
- Yellow-crowned Night-heron
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Who uses this plant?
8CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL
Genus host records with ranges including AL · Sagittaria
- Acronicta oblinitaSmeared Dagger
- Argyrogramma verrucaGolden Looper
- Bellura obliquaCattail Border Moth, Cattail Diver
- Elophila icciusalisPondside Pyralid, Pondside Crambid
- Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
- Parapoynx obscuralisObscure Pondweed Moth
- Spodoptera latifasciaOrange-Striped Armyworm, Velvet Armyworm Moth
- Bellura anoa
11BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Sagittaria
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
9BirdsRecorded eating Sagittaria in Alabama
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes Alabama, most records first.
- CanvasbackRoots. 5 diet records
- Lesser ScaupSeeds. 3 diet records
- MallardSeeds and roots. 2 diet records
- Wood DuckRoots. 2 diet records
- American CootSeeds. 1 diet record
- American WigeonSeeds. 1 diet record
- Common GoldeneyeSeeds. 1 diet record
- Ring-necked DuckRoots. 1 diet record
- Snow GooseRoots. 1 diet record
Direct food only. 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
Birds that eat Sagittaria 9
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.
- CanvasbackAythya valisineria
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Wood DuckAix sponsa
- American CootFulica americana
- American WigeonAnas americana
- Common GoldeneyeBucephala clangula
- Ring-necked DuckAythya collaris
- Snow GooseChen caerulescens
Plant details
- Family
- ALISMATACEAE
Conservation status
| Alabama rank | S1 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | Not available |
| AL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Threatened (US Fish and Wildlife Service) |
Conservation source Federal status source: US Fish and Wildlife Service
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
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition
- 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