States
North CarolinaTennesseeGeorgiaSouth CarolinaKentuckyAlabamaArkansasFloridaLouisianaMississippiVirginiaWest Virginia
Menu

Swamp Lousewort

Pedicularis lanceolata

Found in fens, springheads, wet meadows, marshes, and swampy areas, over calcareous, mafic, or ultramafic rocks. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

43
Good

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

Profile 88%

Height
1–3 feet
Light
Full to part sun
Soil moisture
Moist to wet
Will it fit your yard?

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 October
Fruiting season
September to October

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 2 West Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

1 of 4

Mountain bogs and fens

Wet, open, peaty mountain wetlands fed by seepage, often with sphagnum moss.

Seeps and springs

Places where groundwater keeps the soil or rock wet, such as seepage slopes and spring runs.

Wet meadows

Open, wet, grassy or sedgy ground that is not a bog.

Freshwater marshes

Open, herb-covered wetlands with fresh, non-tidal water.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

4CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV

Genus host records with ranges including WV · Pedicularis

  • Eosphoropteryx thyatyroidesPink-Patched Looper Moth
  • Euphydryas phaetonThe Baltimore, The Black Checker
  • Trichordestra legitimaStriped Garden Caterpillar Moth
  • Herpetogramma aquilonalis
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
3BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Pedicularis

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
5BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Falcipennis canadensisSpruce Grouse
  • Lagopus lagopusWillow Ptarmigan
  • Lagopus mutaRock Ptarmigan
  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
  • Plectrophenax nivalisSnow Bunting
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
Orobanchaceae
Flower color
Cream
Fruit begins
September
Fruit ends
October
Growing sources and scope

Conservation status

West Virginia rankS2
Global rankG4
WV statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

Will it fit your yard?

Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.

Choose a county to begin.

How to check your spot

Growing cautions

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources