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American Mountain-ash

Sorbus americana

Found in moist forests, balds, and rock outcrops, often with Picea , Abies , and/or Betula alleghaniensis , southwards only at high elevations. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

65
Strong

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

Profile 94%

Height
15–35 feet
Spread
8–20 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 14 ft apart from its recorded spread. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Woody perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
June to July
Fruiting season
Summer to fall

Recorded in 7 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 3

Moist forests

Woods Scene
Harvey Joiner, Woods Scene: tall beeches in a moist Kentucky woodland, light falling through a closed canopy onto a damp forest floor. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Kentucky beech woods (Harvey Joiner, Louisville painter of Kentucky beech forests; the painting does not name the site), a neighboring state.Woods Scene, Harvey Joiner, c. 1880-1920. Public domain. Source record.

Mountain balds

Treeless grassy or shrubby summits and ridges in the high mountains.

Cliffs, ledges and rocky summits

Cliffs, ledges, rock outcrops, talus and rocky summits where the source does not name the rock. A named rock files the place under its own glade or outcrop type instead.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in West Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 73 animals.

Widespread birds also seen here (47)

Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.

All wildlife of West Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

67CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV

Genus host records with ranges including WV · Sorbus

  • Acronicta americanaAmerican Dagger
  • Acronicta clarescensClear Dagger
  • Acronicta fragilisFragile Dagger
  • Acronicta funeralisFunerary Dagger, Paddle Caterpillar
  • Acronicta griseaGray Dagger
  • Acronicta impletaYellow-Haired Dagger
  • Acronicta innotataUnmarked Dagger
  • Acronicta interruptaInterrupted Dagger
  • Acronicta radcliffeiRadcliffe's Dagger
  • Acronicta superansSplendid Dagger, Chieftain Dagger
Show all 67
  • Alsophila pometariaFall Cankerworm Moth
  • Amphipyra pyramidoidesMiranda Underwing, Copper Underwing, Copper Amphipyra
  • Antheraea polyphemusPolyphemus Moth
  • Biston betulariaSalt-and-Pepper Geometer, Cleft-Headed Looper
  • Catocala gryneaWoody Underwing
  • Cenopis pettitanaMaple-Basswood Leafroller Moth
  • Choristoneura conflictanaLarge Aspen Tortrix
  • Coelodasys unicornisUnicorn Caterpillar Moth
  • Crocigrapha normaniNorman's Quaker
  • Datana ministraYellow-Necked Caterpillar Moth
  • Dysstroma citrataDark Marbled Carpet
  • Dysstroma truncataMarbled Carpet
  • Ennomos subsignariaElm Spanworm Moth
  • Erannis tiliariaLinden Looper Moth, Western Winter Moth, Lime Looper
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Eupsilia tristigmataThree-Spotted Sallow, Brown Fruitworm
  • Euzophera semifuneralisAmerican Plum Borer
  • Halysidota tessellarisBanded Tussock Moth, Pale Tiger Moth
  • Hedya chionosemaTwin-Spotted Budworm, White-Spotted Hedya
  • Hedya nr.Large Bud Moth, Green Bud Moth, Off-White Hedya
  • Hesperumia sulphurariaSulphur Moth
  • Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
  • Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
  • Iridopsis larvariaBent-Line Gray
  • Korscheltellus gracilisConifer Swift Moth, Graceful Ghost Moth
  • Limenitis arthemisBanded Purple, Red-Spotted Admiral
  • Lithophane innominataNameless Pinion
  • Lomographa semiclarataBluish Spring Moth, Wildcherry Looper
  • Lomographa vestaliataWhite Spring Moth
  • Lophocampa maculataSpotted Tussock Moth, Yellow-Spotted Tiger Moth
  • Lyonetia prunifoliellaStriped Bent-wing
  • Machimia tentoriferellaGold-Striped Leaftier Moth
  • Malacosoma americanaEastern Tent Caterpillar
  • Malacosoma disstriaForest Tent Caterpillar
  • Metaxaglaea semitariaFootpath Sallow
  • Metaxaglaea viaticaRoadside Sallow
  • Nematocampa resistariaFilament Bearer, Horned Spanworm Moth
  • Nemoria mimosariaWhite-Fringed Emerald
  • Nymphalis antiopaMourning Cloak
  • Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
  • Orthosia hibisciSpeckled Green Fruitworm Moth, Speckled Green Quaker
  • Pandemis limitataThree-Lined Leafroller Moth
  • Papilio canadensisCanadian Tiger Swallowtail
  • Papilio glaucusEastern Tiger Swallowtail
  • Paraclemensia acerifoliellaMaple Leafcutter, Maple Case-Bearer
  • Phigalia titeaThe Half-Wing Geometer, Spiney Looper, Eastern Oak Looper
  • Phyllonorycter crataegellaApple Leaf Miner, Apple Blotch Leafminer, Apple Leafblotch Miner
  • Podosesia syringaeLilac Borer Moth, Ash Borer
  • Pseudothyatira cymatophoroidesTufted Thyatirid
  • Rhopobota naevanaBlackheaded Fireworm, Holly Bud Moth, Holly Tortrix
  • Satyrium liparopsStriped Hairstreak
  • Synanthedon pictipesLesser Peachtree Borer Moth
  • Synanthedon pyriApple Bark Borer, Pear Borer
  • Synanthedon scitulaDogwood Borer, Pecan Borer
  • Venusia cambricaThe Welsh Wave
  • Venusia comptariaBrown-Shaded Carpet
  • Xanthotype sospetaCrocus Geometer
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
5BirdsRecorded eating Sorbus in West Virginia

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes West Virginia, most records first.

Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab)

Direct food only. 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

Birds that eat Sorbus 5

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Rosaceae
Hardiness
Zones 2a–6b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
White
Growth rate
Moderate
Growth habit
Single stem
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
Summer
Fruit ends
Fall

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

American Mountain Ash

Conservation status

West Virginia rankS4
Global rankG5
WV statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources