Species › Plants › Bunchberry

Bunchberry

Cornus canadensis

CommonPlant
Illustration of Bunchberry (Cornus canadensis)

Bunchberry is a tiny ground-hugging dogwood—just 3–8 inches tall—that forms dense mats on cool, moist forest floors across boreal North America. Its white flowers each release pollen in less than 0.3 milliseconds, the fastest movement recorded in plants. The bright red berry clusters are eaten by grouse, thrushes, vireos, and many other birds.

Habitat
Cool, moist boreal forest floors, often on mossy substrate
Diet
Berries eaten by grouse, thrushes, vireos, and small mammals
How common
Common

Best time to see a Bunchberry

The best time to see a Bunchberry is May–July, when about 70% of U.S. sightings happen, based on 27,735 research-grade iNaturalist observations.

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