Eastern Swamp Privet
Forestiera acuminata
Found in swamp forests, especially over calcareous substrates. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Mississippi (estimated). How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 82%
- Height
- About 33 feet
- Light
- Full to part sun
- Soil moisture
- Wet
No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
At a glance
- Bloom
- February to May
- Fruiting season
- April to June
Not yet recorded · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves
Recorded in 42 Mississippi counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Mississippi. Shared habitat, not food. 96 animals.
- Northern WaterthrushSeiurus noveboracensis
- Pine SiskinCarduelis pinus
- VeeryCatharus fuscescens
- Wood StorkMycteria americana
- Bewick's WrenThryomanes bewickii
- Blue-winged TealAnas discors
- Brown ThrasherToxostoma rufum
- Common Ground-doveColumbina passerina
- DunlinCalidris alpina
- Great-tailed GrackleQuiscalus mexicanus
- Lapland LongspurCalcarius lapponicus
- Least SandpiperCalidris minutilla
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
- Little Blue HeronEgretta caerulea
- Long-billed DowitcherLimnodromus scolopaceus
- MerlinFalco columbarius
- Mottled DuckAnas fulvigula
- Orange-crowned WarblerVermivora celata
- OvenbirdSeiurus aurocapilla
- Scarlet TanagerPiranga olivacea
- Seaside SparrowAmmodramus maritimus
- Willow FlycatcherEmpidonax traillii
- Wilson's PloverCharadrius wilsonia
- Worm-eating WarblerHelmitheros vermivorum
Widespread birds also seen here (43)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
- American Crow
- American Goldfinch
- American Kestrel
- American Robin
- Bald Eagle
- Belted Kingfisher
- Black-crowned Night-heron
- Blue Grosbeak
- Carolina Chickadee
- Carolina Wren
- Cedar Waxwing
- Chimney Swift
- 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-shouldered Hawk
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Swallow-tailed Kite
- Tufted Titmouse
- Turkey Vulture
- White-throated Sparrow
- Yellow-breasted Chat
- Yellow-crowned Night-heron
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Who uses this plant?
1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including MS
Genus host records with ranges including MS · Forestiera
- Palpita quadristigmalisFour-Spotted Palpita, Privet Moth
2BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Forestiera
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
1BirdsRecorded eating Forestiera in Mississippi
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes Mississippi, most records first.
- Wood DuckSeeds. 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 Forestiera 1
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.
- Wood DuckAix sponsa
Plant details
- Family
- Oleaceae
- Fruit begins
- April
- Fruit ends
- June
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “February to May” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS via EOL TraitBank differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit begins · “April” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “June” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Height · “About 33 feet” · USDA PLANTS via EOL TraitBank · Nationwide approximate species characteristics; tolerance categories do not specify sun hours or moisture requirements
- Light · “Full to part sun” · Tennessee Smart Yards · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
- Soil · “wet” · Tennessee Smart Yards · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
Conservation status
| Mississippi rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | Not available |
| MS 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
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition
- Mississippi occurrence source
- 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