Erodium botrys
Big heron bill
(c) Patricio Novoa Quezada, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Geraniaceae · Type: Herb · Not Native
Erodium botrys (Big heron bill) is a non-native California herb in the Geraniaceae family, recognized by largest overall size, longest style column, and largest fruit.
Big heron bill is a naturalized annual found in the California Floristic Province in dry, open or disturbed sites at elevations below 1,000 meters. Flowering from March to July, this plant produces delicate pink flowers with petals slightly longer than sepals. Growing with prostrate to ascending stems 10 to 90 centimeters long that are short-hairy, it spreads across the ground in a loose, sprawling manner. Its leaves are deeply lobed with segments 8 to 10 millimeters wide, ranging from 3 to 15 centimeters long, with an ovate to oblong shape and sparse short hairs along the veins. The plant's distinctive fruit develops a style column 5 to 12 centimeters long, creating a unique beak-like structure characteristic of its genus.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 6 sympatric species; distinguished by largest overall size, longest style column, and largest fruit
Habitat and range
Habitat: Dry, open or disturbed sites
Elevation: < 1000 m
California counties: Humboldt, Kern, San Luis Obispo, Los Angeles, Ventura, Imperial, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Orange, San Bernardino, Marin, Fresno, Merced, Napa, Madera, Sacramento, Santa Cruz, San Benito, San Mateo, San Francisco, Monterey, Colusa, San Diego, Riverside, Tulare, Butte, Nevada, Amador, Sutter, Calaveras, El Dorado, Lake, San Joaquin, Placer, Yolo, Yuba, Contra Costa, Solano, Sonoma, Tehama, Glenn, Shasta, Stanislaus, Mariposa, Mendocino, Alameda, Tuolumne, Trinity
Outside California: native to southern Europe
Bloom period
Erodium botrys blooms Mar-Jul.
How to tell it apart
vs Geranium: Erodium leaves are pinnately divided like a feather; Geranium leaves are palmately divided like spread fingers.; vs Phacelia: Erodium has umbrella-like flower clusters and long-beaked fruits; Phacelia has coiled flower clusters and rounded capsules.; vs Malva: Erodium has pinnately-divided leaves and 5 petals; Malva has palmately-lobed leaves and many stamens fused in a column.; vs Sisyrinchium: Erodium has feathery divided leaves and pink umbel flowers; Sisyrinchium has grasslike leaves and blue-purple iris-like flowers.; vs Pelargonium: Erodium is herbaceous with pinnately-divided leaves; Pelargonium is shrubby with asymmetrical flowers.
Frequently asked questions
Is Erodium botrys native to California?
No. Erodium botrys is not native to California (recorded as not native).
When does Erodium botrys bloom?
Erodium botrys blooms Mar-Jul.
Where in California does Erodium botrys grow?
Erodium botrys occurs in Humboldt, Kern, San Luis Obispo, Los Angeles, Ventura, Imperial, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara and other counties, at elevations of < 1000 m.
What plant family does Erodium botrys belong to?
Erodium botrys is in the Geraniaceae family, genus Erodium.
What habitat does Erodium botrys grow in?
Erodium botrys grows in Dry, open or disturbed sites.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
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.