Hydrilla

Hydrilla verticillata

-85

Severe harm

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

Profile 47%

Light: Dappled sunlight, Deep shade, Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture: Wet to standing water

Hydrilla verticillata — foliage photograph — (c) Stanislav Murashkin, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0 · Original photograph

Do not plant. Listed invasive in Florida.

At a glance

Life cycle: Perennial

Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Leaves · Bloom

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 40 Florida counties.

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Florida. Shared habitat, not food. 93 animals.

Acadian Flycatcher
Empidonax virescens
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Black Duck
Anas rubripes
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Crow
Corvus brachyrhynchos
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Goldfinch
Carduelis tristis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Kestrel
Falco sparverius
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Redstart
Setophaga ruticilla
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Robin
Turdus migratorius
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Anhinga
Anhinga anhinga
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Bald Eagle
Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Barred Owl
Strix varia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Belted Kingfisher
Megaceryle alcyon
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black Vulture
Coragyps atratus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-and-White Warbler
Mniotilta varia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
Dendrocygna autumnalis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-crowned Night-heron
Nycticorax nycticorax
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Blue Grosbeak
Passerina caerulea
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Blue Jay
Cyanocitta cristata
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Polioptila caerulea
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Boat-tailed Grackle
Quiscalus major
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Brown Creeper
Certhia americana
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Carolina Chickadee
Poecile carolinensis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Cedar Waxwing
Bombycilla cedrorum
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Common Grackle
Quiscalus quiscula
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Common Nighthawk
Chordeiles minor
Birds. 1 shared habitat

All wildlife of Florida

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

3CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL

Genus host records with ranges including FL · Hydrilla

Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
Parapoynx allionealisWatermilfoil Leafcutter, Bladderwort Casemaker
Parapoynx obscuralisObscure Pondweed Moth

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

—BeesSoutheastern regional records

—Specialist beesPollen specialists

2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

Fulica americanaAmerican Coot
Gallinula galeataCommon Gallinule

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: Hydrocharitaceae
Hardiness: Zones 5a–11b

What its natural habitat tells you

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

Growing sources and scope

Hardiness · “Zones 5a–11b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Light · “Dappled sunlight (shade through upper canopy all day); Deep shade (less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight); Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Soil · “Frequent standing water” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox

Conservation status

Florida rank	SNA
Global rank	GNR
FL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

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