Nodding Rattlesnake-root
Prenanthes crepidinea
Found in bottomland forests, rich moist forests, moist to dryish woodlands, prairies, barrens. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to West Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 88%
- Height
- Up to about 10 feet
- Light
- Partial shade, Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Dry to wet
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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
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Bloom
- August to November
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves
Recorded in 1 West Virginia county.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

Floodplain and bottomland forests
Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.
Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.
Open, grass-dominated places kept open by fire, grazing or thin soil, from tallgrass prairie to Piedmont prairies.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in West Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 94 animals.
- American Black DuckAnas rubripes
- Bewick's WrenThryomanes bewickii
- Black-crowned Night-heronNycticorax nycticorax
- Black-throated Blue WarblerDendroica caerulescens
- Black-throated Green WarblerDendroica virens
- Blue-headed VireoVireo solitarius
- Blue-winged WarblerVermivora pinus
- Canada GooseBranta canadensis
- Chuck-will's-widowCaprimulgus carolinensis
- Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon pyrrhonota
- Eastern BluebirdSialia sialis
- Eastern PhoebeSayornis phoebe
- Great Blue HeronArdea herodias
- Great EgretArdea alba
- Green HeronButorides virescens
- Indigo BuntingPasserina cyanea
- Lincoln's SparrowMelospiza lincolnii
- Long-eared OwlAsio otus
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Red-breasted NuthatchSitta canadensis
- Ring-necked DuckAythya collaris
- Song SparrowMelospiza melodia
- Summer TanagerPiranga rubra
- Tree SwallowTachycineta bicolor
Widespread birds also seen here (49)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
- Alder Flycatcher
- American Crow
- American Goldfinch
- American Kestrel
- American Redstart
- American Robin
- Belted Kingfisher
- Black-billed Cuckoo
- Blue Grosbeak
- Blue Jay
- Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
- Cedar Waxwing
- Chestnut-sided Warbler
- Chimney Swift
- Chipping Sparrow
- Common Nighthawk
- Common Raven
- Common Yellowthroat
- Cooper's Hawk
- Dark-eyed Junco
- Eastern Kingbird
- Eastern Towhee
- European Starling
- Fox Sparrow
- Gray Catbird
- Great Crested Flycatcher
- Great Horned Owl
- Least Flycatcher
- Mourning Dove
- Northern Cardinal
- Northern Flicker
- Northern Mockingbird
- Olive-sided Flycatcher
- Orange-crowned Warbler
- Osprey
- Purple Finch
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Rose-breasted Grosbeak
- Ruby-crowned Kinglet
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Spotted Sandpiper
- Tufted Titmouse
- Turkey Vulture
- Veery
- White-throated Sparrow
- Wild Turkey
- Yellow-breasted Chat
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Who uses this plant?
2CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV
Genus host records with ranges including WV · Nabalus
- Argyrotaenia marianaGray-Banded Leafroller Moth
- Paralobesia rhoifructana
9BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Nabalus
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
1Specialist beesPollen specialists
Beetles 1
- Diabrotica longicornis
Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA
No records yet · Ants · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Flower color
- White or yellow
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “August to November” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “White or yellow” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Height · “Up to about 10 feet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Light · “Partial shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil · “Dry; Moist; Wet (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Nodding Rattlesnake Root; Prenanthes crepidinea
Conservation status
| West Virginia rank | S2 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G4 |
| WV 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
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- NatureServe Explorer
- West Virginia 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

























