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Cerastium semidecandrum

L.
Five-stamen mouse-ear chickweed · Little mouse-ear · Fivestamen chickweed · Scarious Chickweed · five-stamen chickweed

Summary

Little mouse-ear is a low-growing, patch-forming winter annual or spring ephemeral herb with dull-green hairy leaves and small white flowers. It typically thrives in sandy, acidic grasslands, thin soils over bare rock, and coastal dune habitats.

Region

It is native to Europe, western Asia, and North Africa, where it favors brightly lit, dry, and low-fertility soils. The species has also become widely established as an introduced plant in the Americas, Australia, and New Zealand.

Uses: beneficial

It serves an ecological role as a pioneer ground cover in sandy and coastal habitats, supporting specific insect herbivores like the small yellow underwing moth and various micromoths.

Distribution

North AmericaEngland (England, Wales, Isle of Man, Scotland, Outer Hebrides, Isles of Scilly); Ireland (Ireland, Northern Ireland); Denmark; Norway; Sweden; Finland; Netherlands; Belgium; Luxembourg; Germany (Brandenburg, Berlin, Baden-Württemberg, Bayern, Hessen, Hamburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Schleswig-Holstein, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt, Thüringen); Switzerland; Liechtenstein; Austria; Poland; Czech Republic; Slovakia; Hungary; Portugal; Spain; Andorra; Baleares; France; Channel Isl. (Alderney, Guernsey, Jersey); Corsica; Sardinia; Italy; Sicily; Pantelleria; Malta; San Marino [I]; Slovenia; Croatia; Bosnia & Hercegovina; Montenegro; Serbia; Kosovo; North Macedonia; Albania; Romania; Bulgaria; European Turkey; Greece (widespread mainland, rare in the South, incl. most islands); Crete (mountains); Estonia; Latvia; Lithuania; Belarus; European Russia; Moldova; Ukraine; Crimea; Morocco; Algeria; Libya; Kazakhstan; Turkmenistan; Uzbekistan; Kyrgyzstan; Tajikistan; Northern Caucasus; Georgia [Caucasus]; Azerbaijan; East Aegaean Isl. (Lesvos, Ikaria, Samos, Kos, Chalki, Rhodos, Kasos, Karpathos); Turkey (NW-Anatolia: Bithynia, W-Anatolia, WN-Anatolia); Iran (N-Iran); Afghanistan (Baghlan, Faryab, Parwan); Cyprus (N-Cyprus); Lebanon (C-Lebanon); Syria (Jazira, NW-Syria); Australia [I] (Western Australia [I], South Australia [I], New South Wales [I], Victoria [I]); New Zealand [I]; Canada [I] (British Columbia [I], Nova Scotia [I], Ontario [I]); USA [I] (Arkansas [I], Connecticut [I], Florida [I], Georgia [I], Idaho [I], Illinois [I], Indiana [I], Kansas [I], Louisiana [I], Maryland [I], Massachusetts [I], Michigan [I], Missouri [I], Nebraska [I], New Jersey [I], New York [I], North Carolina [I], Ohio [I], Oregon [I], Pennsylvania [I], Rhode Island [I], South Carolina [I], Washington [I], Wisconsin [I]); Brazil [I]AfghanistanAlabamaAlbaniaAlgeriaArkansasAustriaBalearesBaltic StatesBelarusBelgiumBrazil SoutheastBrazil SouthBritish ColumbiaBulgariaCentral European RussiaConnecticutCorseCyprusCzechia-SlovakiaDenmarkEast Aegean Is.East European RussiaFinlandFloridaFranceGeorgiaGermanyGreat BritainGreeceHungaryIdahoIllinoisIndianaIranIraqIrelandItalyKansasKazakhstanKentuckyKirgizstanKritiKrymLebanon-SyriaLibyaLouisianaMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMissouriMoroccoNW. Balkan Pen.NebraskaNetherlandsNew JerseyNew YorkNew Zealand NorthNew Zealand SouthNewfoundlandNorth CarolinaNorth CaucasusNorth European RussiaNorthwest European RussiaNorwayNova ScotiaOhioOntarioOregonPennsylvaniaPolandPortugalRhode I.RomaniaSardegnaSiciliaSouth CarolinaSouth European RussiaSpainSwedenSwitzerlandTadzhikistanTasmaniaTennesseeTranscaucasusTunisiaTurkmenistanTürkiye-in-EuropeTürkiyeUkraineUzbekistanWashingtonWisconsinAUBEBRCACHDEDKFRLUNLNOPTSEUS

Images

habit (1)
habit

Sources

Event c752b26945d5… published by npub1308mc75…