Flower profile
Musk stork's-bill
Erodium moschatum
Musk stork's-bill (Erodium moschatum) is a flowering plant in the Geraniaceae family, introduced in the lower 48 states, blooming mostly February–May across the U.S.
Musk stork's-bill is a wildflower that USDA PLANTS lists as introduced in the lower 48 states. In California it's most often seen in bloom in February–May.
*iNaturalist research-grade observations, as of October 17, 2026.
On our lists for: California
Quick look
Erodium moschatum is a species of flowering plant in the geranium family known by the common names musk stork's-bill and whitestem filaree. This is a weedy annual or biennial herb which is native to much of Eurasia and North Africa but can be found on most continents where it is an introduced species.
- It belongs to the Geraniaceae family. iNaturalist
- USDA PLANTS describes it as an herb (forb) with a annual, biennial life cycle. USDA PLANTS
- USDA PLANTS lists it as introduced in the lower 48 states and records it in 13 states. USDA PLANTS
- NatureServe lists it as not native to California. NatureServe
- In California, most iNaturalist sightings of it in flower come in February–May. iNaturalist
- iNaturalist has 11,634 research-grade sightings of it in California, ranking #77 among the 178 flowers on our California list. iNaturalist
When does it bloom?
In California, most flowering sightings come in February–May.
Conservation status
- Federal (U.S. ESA)
- Not listed No U.S. Endangered Species Act listing in the USFWS ECOS database. USFWS ECOS
- NatureServe global
- GNR Not yet ranked worldwide. NatureServe
- California
- Not listed Not on California state-listed endangered, threatened and rare plants (14 CCR § 670.2), per CDFW's CNDDB list (July 2026). NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in California. CNDDB listed plants (July 2026)
- Rare elsewhere
- No other U.S. state ranks it S1, S2, SH or SX.
Checked October 17, 2026. Rankings and lists can change, so follow the links for the latest.
Can you eat it?
None of the sources we checked (NC State Extension (no page for this plant), USDA PLANTS) say whether it's edible or poisonous for people.
It isn't on the ASPCA plant list.
🌿 Never eat a wild plant unless you're certain of its ID; this isn't medical advice. Worried about a person? Call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Worried about a pet? Call your vet.
Where does it grow?
USDA PLANTS records musk stork's-bill in 13 states.
recorded by USDA PLANTS on our state lists not recorded
See the full list of states
Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, Washington.
California counties with USDA records: Alameda, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Contra Costa, Glenn, Humboldt, Kern, Kings, Los Angeles, Madera, Marin, Mendocino, Merced, Monterey, Napa, Nevada, Orange, Plumas, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Shasta, Solano, Sonoma, Stanislaus, Tehama, Tuolumne, Ventura, Yolo.
Names, range and relatives
Native status by region (USDA PLANTS): Canada: Introduced; Lower 48 states: Introduced.
County records: USDA PLANTS lists it in 55 counties across 8 states; the most are in California (38), Oregon (8), Massachusetts (3).
Other Erodium on Bloomipedia (2): Redstem stork's-bill, Mediterranean stork's-bill.
More from the Geraniaceae family (11 on Bloomipedia; most observed first): Wild geranium, Herb robert, Carolina crane's-bill, Dove's-foot crane's-bill, Richardson's geranium, Sticky geranium, Pinewoods geranium, Shining crane's-bill.
More California flowers
Sources
- USDA, NRCS. PLANTS Database, profile ERMO7.
- iNaturalist, Erodium moschatum: taxonomy, research-grade observation counts and “Flowering” annotations, retrieved October 17, 2026.
- Wikipedia, Erodium moschatum (lead quoted under CC BY-SA 4.0).
- California: California state-listed endangered, threatened and rare plants (14 CCR § 670.2), per CDFW's CNDDB list (July 2026).
- California: California noxious weed species (3 CCR § 4500).
- USFWS, ECOS species database (ESA listing check), October 17, 2026.
- NatureServe Explorer, Erodium moschatum (global and state ranks).
- Edibility and toxicity: no source found (marked "not well documented").
- Photo: Vasily Reinkymov via iNaturalist · CC0 · resized.