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Dangleberry

Gaylussacia frondosa

Found in moist, acidic woodlands, especially in sandhill-pocosin and savanna-pocosin ecotones, also in dry chestnut oak forests in the lower Piedmont. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

81
Keystone

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
2–4 feet
Spread
2–4 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 3 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 11 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Woody perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
March to May
Fruiting season
June to August

Recorded in 55 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

Forests and woodlands

Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 120 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

45CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Gaylussacia

  • Acleris curvalanaBlueberry Leaftier Moth
  • Acleris pulverosana"North American" Hasty Acleris
  • Acrobasis vacciniiCranberry Fruitworm
  • Amorbia humerosanaWhite-Lined Leafroller Moth
  • Anaplectoides prasinaGreen Arches Dart
  • Antaeotricha leucillanaWell-Marked Leaf Tier, Pale Gray Bird-Dropping Moth
  • Antheraea polyphemusPolyphemus Moth
  • Archips purpuranaOmnivorous Leafroller Moth
  • Callophrys augustinusThe Brown Elfin
  • Callophrys henriciHenry's Elfin
Show all 45
  • Cameraria hamadryadellaSolitary Oak Leafminer Moth
  • Choristoneura obsoletanaObsolete Leafroller
  • Chrysanympha formosaFormosa Looper Moth, Beautiful Looper
  • Clepsis peritanaGarden Tortrix
  • Crocigrapha normaniNorman's Quaker
  • Cyclophora myrtariaWaxmyrtle Wave
  • Cyclophora pendulinariaSweetfern Geometer
  • Darapsa choerilusAzalea Sphinx
  • Datana drexeliiDrexel's Datana
  • Euplexia benesimilisAmerican Angle Shades
  • Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
  • Limenitis archippusViceroy
  • Lithacodes fasciolaYellow-Shouldered Slug
  • Megalopyge crispataBlack-Waved Flannel Moth, Crinkled Flannel Moth
  • Melanomma auricinctariaGold-Lined Melanomma
  • Morrisonia confusaConfused Woodgrain
  • Nites betulellaBlackdotted Birch Leaftier
  • Olethreutes appendiceumServiceberry Leafroller
  • Olethreutes permundanaRaspberry Leafroller
  • Paonias astylusHuckleberry Sphinx
  • Polia nimbosaStormy Arches
  • Prionapteryx nebuliferaClouded Veneer Moth
  • Psectraglaea carnosaCrimson Sallow
  • Rheumaptera hastataSpear-Marked Black Moth, Spear Mark
  • Scopula limboundataLarge Lace-Border
  • Sphinx gordiusApple Sphinx
  • Sphinx kalmiaeFawn Sphinx, Laurel Sphinx
  • Spiramater lutraDarling Mamestra, Splashed Arches, Otter Spiramater, Otter Arches
  • Strepsicrates smithianaBayberry Leaftier
  • Synchlora aerataWavy-Lined Emerald, Camouflaged Looper
  • Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
  • Xestia dilucidaDull Reddish Dart, Reddish Heath Dart
  • Zomaria interruptolineanaBroken-Lined Zomaria
  • Chaetaglaea rhonda
  • Coleophora gaylussaciella
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
4BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Gaylussacia

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
3Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Gaylussacia

  • Andrena bradleyi
  • Andrena carolina
  • Colletes validus
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
11BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Acanthis flammeaCommon Redpoll
  • Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
  • Catharus guttatusHermit Thrush
  • Catharus ustulatusSwainson's Thrush
  • Hylocichla mustelinaWood Thrush
  • Lagopus lagopusWillow Ptarmigan
  • Loxia leucopteraWhite-winged Crossbill
  • Pinicola enucleatorPine Grosbeak
  • Sialia sialisEastern Bluebird
  • Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
Show all 11
  • Tyrannus tyrannusEastern Kingbird
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

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Ericaceae
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
Pink or white
Growth rate
Slow
Growth habit
Several stems
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
June
Fruit ends
August

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Gaylussacia frondosa var. frondosa

Conservation status

Virginia rankS5
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources