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Red Spiderling

Boerhavia coccinea

Found in beaches, shell middens, coastal strands (in FL), elsewhere in disturbed areas, adventive on ballast. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

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Not native

Not native to Florida. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 65%

Light
Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to moist

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
June to September

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 11 Florida counties.

Natural habitats

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

1 of 2

Coastal dunes and beaches

Open sand of beaches, dunes and the hollows between them.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

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

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

7CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL

Genus host records with ranges including FL · Boerhavia

  • Archirhoe neomexicanaNew Mexico Carpet
  • Disclisioprocta stellataSomber Carpet, Bougainvillea Looper
  • Euptoieta claudiaVariegated Fritillary, (?)Gulf Fritillary
  • Hyles lineataWhite-Lined Sphinx
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Spoladea recurvalisHawaiian Beet Webworm
  • Megalorhipida leucodactylus
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Callipepla gambeliiGambel's Quail
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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Nyctaginaceae
Flower color
White, pink or purple

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

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “June to September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Flower color · “White, pink or purple” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Light · “Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia

Conservation status

Florida rankSNR
Global rankGNR
FL statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden

Sources