American HollyIlex opaca Aiton

Taxon ID: 1434

Summary

American Holly (Ilex opaca) is a species in the genus Ilex.

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Records

MBP has 2,527 records spanning all 23 Maryland counties and Baltimore City.

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Media

30 displayed media

American Holly in fruit in Charles Co., Maryland (11/28/2020). (c) johnbotany, some rights reserved (<a rel='license' href='http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/'>CC BY-NC</a>).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by John Hall View Record

American Holly growing in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (2/5/2017).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Robert Ferraro View Record

American Holly in Calvert Co., Maryland (3/29/2016).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Robert Ferraro View Record

American Holly in Prince George's Co., Maryland (9/25/2016).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Bill Hubick View Record

American Holly with flower buds, in Caroline Co., Maryland (4/26/2016).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Wayne Longbottom View Record

American Holly in flower in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (5/17/2017).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Robert Ferraro View Record

American Holly blooming in Kent Co., Maryland (5/24/2016).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Walter Ellison View Record

American Holly in flower in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (5/11/2012).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Bill Harms View Record

The flowers of American Holly in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (5/10/2017).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Matthew Beziat View Record

American Holly with immature fruit in St. Mary's Co., Maryland (9/10/2016).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Jim Brighton View Record

American Holly in fruit in Harford Co., Maryland (11/13/2016).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Dave Webb View Record

American Holly in fruit in Montgomery Co., Maryland (12/10/2013).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Bill Hill View Record

American Holly in flower in Howard Co., Maryland (10/23/2019). Collected and processed by Helen Lowe Metzman.

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by USGS PWRC View Record

American Holly flower in Howard Co., Maryland (10/23/2019). Collected and processed by Helen Lowe Metzman.

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by USGS PWRC View Record

American Holly in Frederick Co., Maryland (5/12/2016).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Elizabeth Miller View Record

An American Holly on Assateague Island, Worcester Co., Maryland (2/20/2016). Overall structure representative of individuals found on the island.

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Bill Hubick View Record

American Holly in Worcester Co., Maryland (11/10/2018). (c) Bill Hubick, all rights reserved

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Bill Hubick View Record

American Holly in Queen Anne's Co., Maryland (12/21/2025). (c) Tom Field, some rights reserved (<a rel='license' href='http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/'>CC BY</a>)

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Tom Feild View Record

American Holly in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (10/26/2025). (c) Wayne Longbottom, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Wayne Longbottom View Record

American Holly in Prince George's Co., Maryland (5/19/2025). No rights reserved.

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Casey Harless via iNaturalist View Record

American Holly in Montgomery Co., Maryland (1/10/2021). (c) hansue, some rights reserved (<a rel='license' href='http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/'>CC BY-NC</a>).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by hansue via iNaturalist View Record

American Holly in Frederick Co., Maryland (2/29/2024). (c) Mark Apgar, some rights reserved (<a rel='license' href='http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/'>CC BY</a>).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Mark Apgar via iNaturalist View Record

American Holly in Montgomery Co., Maryland (1/20/2022). (c) belby, some rights reserved (<a rel='license' href='http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/'>CC BY-NC</a>).

American Holly (Ilex opaca Aiton) Media by Bonnie Bell View Record

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Media use: Photos and other media featured on Maryland Biodiversity Project may be used only with express permission of the photographer.

Details

Status

Mostly a southern tree, but has been making its way northward due to its fruits' popularity with birds (Harlow, 1957).

Description

American Holly is dioecious (meaning each tree is either male or female). The leaves are evergreen, leathery, glabrous, and dark green above. They have spiny-toothed margins. Bright red fruits (drupes) persist through the winter.

Where To Find

Most abundant on the Coastal Plain, in moist, sandy woodlands (Brown and Brown, 1972).

Relationships

The fruits are eaten by a wide variety of birds.

The lichen Trypethelium virens often grows on American Holly in Maryland. Host plant for various species of moth including Holly Sallow Moth and members of the genus Rhopobota. Leaves are frequently mined by larvae of the leaf-mining flies Phytomyza opacae and Phytomyza ilicicola.