Western Poison Ivy
Toxicodendron rydbergii
Found in acid pine-oak forests and woodlands at moderate elevations. 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 35%
- Soil moisture
- Somewhat dry to moist
No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source
Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.
At a glance
Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Light · Life cycle · Leaves · Bloom
This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.
Recorded in 2 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.
Who uses this plant?
57CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Rhus
- Achatia distinctaDistinct Quaker
- Acronicta longaLong-Winged Dagger, Darkish Dagger
- Actias lunaLuna Moth
- 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
- Biston betulariaSalt-and-Pepper Geometer, Cleft-Headed Looper
Show all 57
- 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
- Citheronia regalisRoyal Walnut Moth, Hickory Horned Devil
- 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
38BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Toxicodendron
- Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
- Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
- Campephilus principalisIvory-billed Woodpecker
- Cardinalis cardinalisNorthern Cardinal
- Catharus guttatusHermit Thrush
- Catharus ustulatusSwainson's Thrush
- Chamaea fasciataWrentit
- Columba liviaRock Pigeon
- Contopus virensEastern Wood-Pewee
- Dryobates nuttalliiNuttall's Woodpecker
Show all 38
- Dryobates pubescensDowny Woodpecker
- Empidonax flaviventrisYellow-bellied Flycatcher
- Haemorhous mexicanusHouse Finch
- Ixoreus naeviusVaried Thrush
- Junco hyemalisDark-eyed Junco
- Melanerpes carolinusRed-bellied Woodpecker
- Melanerpes erythrocephalusRed-headed Woodpecker
- Melospiza melodiaSong Sparrow
- Melozone crissalisCalifornia Towhee
- Myadestes townsendiTownsend's Solitaire
- Oreortyx pictusMountain Quail
- Pheucticus melanocephalusBlack-headed Grosbeak
- Pipilo maculatusSpotted Towhee
- Quiscalus quisculaCommon Grackle
- Sayornis nigricansBlack Phoebe
- Sialia mexicanaWestern Bluebird
- Sialia sialisEastern Bluebird
- Sphyrapicus ruberRed-breasted Sapsucker
- Toxostoma longirostreLong-billed Thrasher
- Toxostoma redivivumCalifornia Thrasher
- Toxostoma rufumBrown Thrasher
- Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
- Tympanuchus phasianellusSharp-tailed Grouse
- Vireo belliiBell's Vireo
- Vireo gilvusWarbling Vireo
- Vireo griseusWhite-eyed Vireo
- Zonotrichia atricapillaGolden-crowned Sparrow
- Zonotrichia leucophrysWhite-crowned Sparrow
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
- Family not recorded
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | S1 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | Not available |
| 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
- Virginia DCR Natural Heritage rare plant list
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- 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