Quercus

Sessileleaf Tick-trefoil

Desmodium sessilifolium

Native to Kentucky (estimated)

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

21CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including KY

Genus host records with ranges including KY · Desmodium

  • Epargyreus clarusSilver-spotted Skipper
  • Aristotelia roseosuffusellaPink-Washed Aristotelia
  • Brenthia pavonacellaPeacock Brenthia Moth
  • Caloptilia violacellaTick-Trefoil Caloptilia
  • Cecropterus bathyllusSouthern Cloudywing
  • Cecropterus lyciadesHoary Edge
  • Cecropterus pyladesNorthern Cloudywing
  • Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
  • Coelostathma discopunctanaThe Batman Moth
  • Cupido comyntasEastern Tailed-Blue
Show all 21
  • Dasylophia anguinaBlack-Spotted Prominent
  • Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
  • Hypena scabraGreen Cloverworm Bomolocha, Black Snout
  • Pyrrhia ciliscaAmerican Bordered Sallow, Noble Sun Moth
  • Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Strymon melinusGray Hairstreak
  • Urbanus proteusLong-Tailed Skipper, Bean Leaf Roller
  • Anarsioses aberrans
  • Cosmopterix lespedezae
  • Porphyrosela desmodiella
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
15BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Desmodium

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
3BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
  • Colinus virginianusNorthern Bobwhite
  • Cyrtonyx montezumaeMontezuma Quail
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Fabaceae
Flower color
Pink or purple

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Sessile Leaf Tick Trefoil; Sessileleaf Tick trefoil

Conservation status

Kentucky rankSNR
Global rankG5
KY statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

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Sources