Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare
Common mouse-ear chickweed, Common Mouse-Ear Chickweed
(c) Wolfgang Jauch, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Caryophyllaceae · Type: Herb · Not Native
Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare (Common mouse-ear chickweed) is a non-native California herb in the Caryophyllaceae family, recognized by non-glandular hairs and sepal margins.
Common mouse-ear chickweed is a naturalized perennial herb found in northwestern California, the high Cascade Range, central Sierra Nevada, northern and central Sierra Nevada, southern coastal ranges, southern California coast, San Bernardino Mountains, and Peninsular Ranges in disturbed areas, grassy slopes, damp woodland, and marshy ground at elevations below 2,200 meters. Flowering in spring, this plant produces white flowers in small clusters with five flower parts and delicate petals 4 to 5 millimeters long. Growing 6 to 35 centimeters tall with a mat-forming habit and erect flowering stems, it often flowers in its first year with non-glandular hairs. Its leaves on the flowering stem are 8 to 25 millimeters long, ranging from lanceolate to broadly oblong in shape. The fruit is 6.5 to 11 millimeters long, with tiny seeds approximately 0.6 to 0.7 millimeters in size.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 5 sympatric species; distinguished by non-glandular hairs and sepal margins
Habitat and range
Habitat: Disturbed areas, grassy slopes, damp woodland, marshy ground
Elevation: < 2200 m
California counties: Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Contra Costa, Fresno, Inyo, Lake, Mariposa, San Luis Obispo, Santa Clara, Siskiyou, Tulare, San Mateo, El Dorado, Nevada, Sierra, San Joaquin, Calaveras, San Francisco, Marin, Lassen, Monterey, Napa, Plumas, Tuolumne, Santa Barbara, Placer, Sacramento, Butte, Shasta, Tehama, Humboldt, Del Norte, Trinity, Mono, Sonoma, Alpine, Modoc, Mendocino, Yolo, Santa Cruz, Orange
Outside California: North America, native to Europe
Bloom period
Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare blooms Spring.
How to tell it apart
vs Stellaria: Cerastium capsules are cylindrical and curved; Stellaria capsules are round and straight.; vs Limnanthes: Cerastium has tiny white flowers with cylindrical capsules; Limnanthes has showy bowl-shaped flowers with separate nutlets.; vs Pseudostellaria: Cerastium has fuzzy leaves and curved capsules; Pseudostellaria has smooth leaves and straight capsules.
Frequently asked questions
Is Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare native to California?
No. Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare is not native to California (recorded as not native).
When does Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare bloom?
Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare blooms Spring.
Where in California does Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare grow?
Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare occurs in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Contra Costa, Fresno, Inyo, Lake and other counties, at elevations of < 2200 m.
What plant family does Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare belong to?
Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare is in the Caryophyllaceae family, genus Cerastium.
What habitat does Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare grow in?
Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare grows in Disturbed areas, grassy slopes, damp woodland, marshy ground.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
- Cerastium glomeratum — Sticky mouse-ear chickweed
- Cerastium sp.
- Cerastium viride — Western field mouse-ear chickweed
- Cerastium arvense subsp. strictum — Field mouse-ear chickweed
- Cerastium beeringianum — Bering mouse-ear chickweed
- Cerastium dichotomum — Forked mouse-ear chickweed
- Cherleria biflora — Mountain sandwort
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.