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Cutleaf Crane's-bill

Geranium dissectum

Found in roadsides, pastures, disturbed areas. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

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Not native

Not native to West Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 59%

Light
Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to moist

At a glance

Bloom
April to August

Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 3 West Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

23CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV

Genus host records with ranges including WV · Geranium

  • Anavitrinella pampinariaCommon Gray, Cranberry Spanworm
  • Apamea devastatorGlassy Borer, Glassy Cutworm Moth
  • Archips purpuranaOmnivorous Leafroller Moth
  • Argyrotaenia velutinanaRed-Banded Leafroller Moth, Jack Pine Tube Moth
  • Cenopis reticulatanaReticulated Fruitworm Moth
  • Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
  • Choristoneura rosaceanaOblique-Banded Leafroller Moth, Rosaceous Leaf Roller
  • Chrysodeixis includensSoybean Looper Moth
  • Condica sutorThe Cobbler, Cobbler Groundling
  • Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
Show all 23
  • Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
  • Lacinipolia loreaBridled Arches, Bridle Groundcat
  • Megalographa bilobaBilobed Looper Moth
  • Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
  • Prochoerodes lineolaLarge Maple Spanworm Moth
  • Pyrrhia ciliscaAmerican Bordered Sallow, Noble Sun Moth
  • Pyrrhia exprimensPurple-Lined Sallow, Purple-Lined Sun Moth
  • Spargania magnoliataDouble-Banded Carpet
  • Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
  • Trichoplusia niNi Moth, Cabbage Looper Moth
  • Udea rubigalisCelery Leaftier
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
1Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Geranium

  • Andrena distans
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 · Geranium

  • Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
  • Colinus virginianusNorthern Bobwhite
  • Columbina passerinaCommon Ground Dove
  • Haemorhous mexicanusHouse Finch
  • Junco hyemalisDark-eyed Junco
  • Melospiza melodiaSong Sparrow
  • Melozone crissalisCalifornia Towhee
  • Pheucticus melanocephalusBlack-headed Grosbeak
  • Zenaida macrouraMourning Dove
  • Zonotrichia atricapillaGolden-crowned Sparrow
Show all 11
  • Zonotrichia leucophrysWhite-crowned Sparrow
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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Geraniaceae

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Cut Leaf Cranes Bill; Cutleaf Crane's bill

Conservation status

West Virginia rankSNA
Global rankGNR
WV statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden

Sources