Cuscuta occidentalis

California dodder

Family: Convolvulaceae · Type: perennial · Native

California dodder is a native parasitic plant found in northwestern California, central Sierra Nevada, Great Valley, central western California, and southeastern Sierra Nevada regions, growing on various herbs at elevations up to 2,000 meters. Flowering from March to September, this plant produces small, delicate flowers in compact clusters with membranous, bell-shaped calyxes and cream to white corollas. Growing as a thin, thread-like parasitic vine that winds around host plants, it lacks chlorophyll and relies entirely on its host for nutrients. Its flowers are distinctive, with lanceolate lobes approximately 3 millimeters long, forming spherical to slightly flattened fruits that are translucent and contain two to four tiny seeds. The plant's unique parasitic nature allows it to attach and extract nutrients directly from the tissues of its host herbs.

Habitat: Generally on herbs

Bloom period: Mar-Sep

Elevation: < 2000 m

Bioregions: NW, c SNH, GV, CW, SNE

California counties: Siskiyou, Mono, Tehama, San Bernardino, Marin, Trinity, Alpine, Mendocino, Monterey, Los Angeles, Fresno, Nevada, Butte, Plumas, Napa, Contra Costa, Humboldt, Glenn, Santa Barbara, Sonoma, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, Sierra, Del Norte, San Mateo, Lassen, Tulare, San Diego, Tuolumne, Solano, San Joaquin, El Dorado, Merced, Inyo

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.