Ilex aquifolium
Ilex aquifolium
FamilyGenus: Ilexnative in Germany
🌿
88
Species
interact
🔗
128
Interactions
documented
🐛
4
Host relationships
Species
About this species
Ilex aquifolium is a native evergreen shrub or small tree of shady woodlands, typically found on fresh, moderately moist, neutral to slightly acidic soils. It bears broad, leathery leaves and flowers in late spring.
Ecological network
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PollinationLarval hostFlower visit
Ecological significance
Ilex aquifolium is a native component of shady woodlands, where it contributes to the woody structure of the understorey and canopy on fresh, neutral to slightly acidic soils with low disturbance.
Annual cycle
Evergreen leaves persist all year; flowering occurs in May and June.
Standort & Merkmale
Light
Schatten
Moisture
Frisch (Mäßig feucht)
Soil
Mittelzehrer (Normaler Boden)
Flowering period
Mai – Jun
Soil reaction
Mäßig sauer bis neutral
Bioregion
Continental
Growth form
Strauch/Baum
Woodiness
Verholzt
Leaf type
Breitblättrig
Leaf phenology
Immergrün
Plant height
6.344 m
Morphological traits: TRY ID3 (CC BY 3.0) & TRY ID81 (CC BY)
Pflege & Anbau
Plant in shade, in moist, well-drained soil of moderate fertility.
Scientific profile
Ilex aquifolium is an evergreen, broad-leaved woody plant that can grow as a shrub or small tree, reaching around 6.3 m in height. The leaves are broad, with an average leaf area of about 1540 mm², and the diaspores are small, averaging roughly 30 mg. It typically inhabits shady woodland habitats on fresh, moderately moist soils of medium fertility and a neutral to weakly acidic reaction. It shows a low tolerance for disturbance. This species forms arbuscular mycorrhizal associations. Flowering occurs from May to June, and the foliage remains green throughout the year.
Pollinators & visitors
39 Arten interagieren mit dieser Pflanze
Turdus philomelosAndrena fulvaTurdus iliacusCelastrina argiolusSylvia atricapillaColumba palumbusTurdus pilarisApis melliferaLasioglossum lativentreBombus hypnorumAndrena haemorrhoaAndrena nitidaAndrena barbilabrisPieris napiAndrena helvolaAndrena carantonicaVanessa atalantaCallophrys rubiPolygonia c-albumAndrena wilkellaAndrena nigroaeneaBombus lucorumAndrena fucataOsmia bicornisAndrena chrysoscelesHylaeus hyalinatusBombus pratorumPlatnickina tinctaPararge aegeriaPaidiscura pallensPolistes dominulaAncistrocerus gazellaPhilodromus disparPasser domesticusBombus terrestrisAndrena angustiorAndrena variansAndrena synadelphaAndrena scotica
Host relationships
4 species use this plant as a host
Ourapteryx sambucariaSphinx ligustriAcasis viretataGymnoscelis rufifasciata
Other flower visitors
45 other species visit the flowers
Erithacus rubeculaPica picaSylvia currucaGarrulus glandariusVulpes vulpesTurdus merulaTurdus torquatusTurdus viscivorusPicus viridisAegithalos caudatusMuscicapa striataSus scrofaMeles melesCapreolus capreolusFringilla coelebsPyrrhula pyrrhulaPeriparus aterSylvia cantillansMartes foinaLuscinia megarhynchosMonticola solitariusOriolus oriolusPogonocherus hispidusDolichoderus quadripunctatusPipistrellus pipistrellusPlecotus auritusPoecile palustrisCorvus coroneSylvia borinParus majorPoecile montanusSturnus vulgarisStreptopelia decaoctoGallinula chloropusCervus elaphusMartes martesLophophanes cristatusCyanistes caeruleusSylvia communisErinaceus europaeusPhoenicurus phoenicurusFicedula hypoleucaPhoenicurus ochrurosSaxicola torquatusSylvia undata
Sources & data origin
•Interaktionsdaten via GloBI (CC-BY 4.0)
•Cook et al. (2025) UK Butterfly & Moth Traits (DOI: 10.5285/dbc7cc17-cbbd-49dd-bab4-8e8855768d66)
•pollinator_interactions
•FloraWeb / BfN
•EIVE 1.0 — Dengler et al. (2023), DOI: 10.3897/VCS.98324 (CC BY 4.0)
•GBIF Backbone Taxonomy — GBIF Secretariat (2024), DOI: 10.15468/39omei (CC BY 4.0)
•TRY Categorical Traits (ID3) — Kattge et al. (2012), DOI: 10.17871/TRY.3 (CC BY 3.0)
•TRY Global Spectrum (ID81) — Díaz et al. (2016/2021), DOI: 10.17871/TRY.81 (CC BY)
•Govaerts R et al. (2025) — World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP) v14. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. DOI: 10.34885/xs7h-ze42 (CC BY 4.0)
•Foto: © Adobe Stock / AdobeStock_371266747
All data is licensed under CC BY 4.0, CC0, or compatible terms. Attribution according to license conditions. Full source overview →