Fragrant Sumac; Squawbush; Squaw Bush
Rhus aromatica var. aromatica
Found in forests and woodlands; glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone; glades, barrens and outcrops on mafic or serpentine rock; streams, rivers and their banks; roadsides, fields and disturbed ground. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 47%
- Light
- 4 or more hours of direct sun
No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
At a glance
Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Soil · Life cycle · Leaves · Bloom
This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.
Recorded in 47 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone
Streams, rivers and their banks
Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.
Glades, barrens and outcrops on mafic or serpentine rock
Open, thin-soil openings, outcrops and cliffs on dark, magnesium- or iron-rich rock such as serpentine, diabase or gabbro.
Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground
Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 89 animals.
- Blue-gray GnatcatcherPolioptila caerulea
- Blue-winged WarblerVermivora pinus
- Broad-winged HawkButeo platypterus
- Carolina ChickadeePoecile carolinensis
- Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon pyrrhonota
- Fox SparrowPasserella iliaca
- Golden-winged WarblerVermivora chrysoptera
- Hooded MerganserLophodytes cucullatus
- Indigo BuntingPasserina cyanea
- Lapland LongspurCalcarius lapponicus
- Long-eared OwlAsio otus
- MerlinFalco columbarius
- Northern CardinalCardinalis cardinalis
- Rose-breasted GrosbeakPheucticus ludovicianus
- Short-eared OwlAsio flammeus
- Spotted SandpiperActitis macularius
- Wood ThrushHylocichla mustelina
Who uses this plant?
57CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Rhus
- Actias lunaLuna Moth
- Citheronia regalisRegal Moth
- Achatia distinctaDistinct Quaker
- Acronicta longaLong-Winged Dagger, Darkish Dagger
- Amorbia humerosanaWhite-Lined Leafroller Moth
- Antepione thisoariaVariable Antepione
- Archips argyrospilaFruit-Tree Leafroller Moth
- Archips georgianaFireworm, Georgia Leafroller
- Archips purpuranaOmnivorous Leafroller Moth
- Argyrotaenia quercifolianaYellow-Winged Oak Leafroller Moth, Lined Oak Leafroller
Show all 57
- Biston betulariaSalt-and-Pepper Geometer, Cleft-Headed Looper
- Caloptilia belfragellaDogwood Caloptilia
- Caloptilia rhoifoliellaSumac Leafblotch Miner Moth, Sumac Caloptilia
- Calycopis cecropsRed-Banded Hairstreak, Cecrops Hairstreak
- Cameraria guttifinitellaPoison Ivy Leafminer
- Cecrita guttivittaMaple Prominent, Saddled Prominent
- Celastrina neglectaSummer Azure
- Chloropteryx tepperariaAngled-Winged Emerald
- Choristoneura rosaceanaOblique-Banded Leafroller Moth, Rosaceous Leaf Roller
- Cleora sublunariaDouble-Lined Gray
- Datana ministraYellow-Necked Caterpillar Moth
- Datana perspicuaSpotted Dantana
- Derrima stellataPink Star
- Dichorda iridariaShowy Emerald
- Eacles imperialisImperial Moth, Imperial Spiny Caterpillar
- Episimus argutanaSumac Leaftier
- Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
- Holcocera chalcofrontellaSumac Holcocera
- Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
- Iridopsis defectariaBrown-Shaded Gray, Willow Looper
- Lophocampa caryaeHickory Tussock Moth, Hickory Tiger Moth
- Marathyssa basalisLight Marathyssa
- Marathyssa inficitaDark Marathyssa
- Marathyssa pulcherrimusBeautiful Eutelia
- Melanolophia canadariaCanadian Melanolphia, Variable Redmarked Looper
- Moodna ostrinellaDarker Moodna
- Morrisonia confusaConfused Woodgrain
- Nemoria bifilataWhite-Barred Emerald
- Nemoria rubrifrontariaRed-Fronted Emerald
- Olethreutes appendiceumServiceberry Leafroller
- Olethreutes permundanaRaspberry Leafroller
- Paectes oculatrixEyed Paectes
- Paectes pygmaeaPygmy Paectes
- Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
- Pleuroprucha insulsariaCommon Tan Wave
- Pococera asperatellaMaple Webworm
- Pseudochelaria walsinghamiWalsingham's Moth
- Pyrrhia ciliscaAmerican Bordered Sallow, Noble Sun Moth
- Sciota subfuscellaStriped Sumac Leafroller
- Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
- Spiramater lutraDarling Mamestra, Splashed Arches, Otter Spiramater, Otter Arches
- Telphusa longifasciellaY-Backed Telphusa
- Tetracis crocallataYellow Slant-Line
- Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
- Paralobesia cypripediana
- Paralobesia rhoifructana
- Schreckensteinia erythriella
52BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Rhus
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
32BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Rhus
- Sialia sialisEastern Bluebird
- Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
- Agelaius phoeniceusRed-winged Blackbird
- Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
- Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
- Callipepla gambeliiGambel's Quail
- Cardinalis cardinalisNorthern Cardinal
- Catharus fuscescensVeery
- Catharus guttatusHermit Thrush
- Catharus minimus/bicknelliGray-cheeked/Bicknell's Thrush
Show all 32
- Catharus ustulatusSwainson's Thrush
- Centrocercus urophasianusGreater Sage-Grouse
- Coccothraustes vespertinusEvening Grosbeak
- Colinus virginianusNorthern Bobwhite
- Ixoreus naeviusVaried Thrush
- Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
- Mimus polyglottosNorthern Mockingbird
- Myadestes townsendiTownsend's Solitaire
- Oreortyx pictusMountain Quail
- Patagioenas fasciataBand-tailed Pigeon
- Pheucticus melanocephalusBlack-headed Grosbeak
- Pinicola enucleatorPine Grosbeak
- Pipilo maculatusSpotted Towhee
- Sialia currucoidesMountain Bluebird
- Sialia mexicanaWestern Bluebird
- Sturnus vulgarisEuropean Starling
- Tyrannus tyrannusEastern Kingbird
- Vireo gilvusWarbling Vireo
- Vireo griseusWhite-eyed Vireo
- Vireo huttoniHutton's Vireo
- Vireo olivaceusRed-eyed Vireo
- Vireo solitariusBlue-headed Vireo
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
Plant details
- Family
- ANACARDIACEAE
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | S5 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5T5 |
| VA 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
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025)
- NatureServe Explorer
- 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