Corylus americana

Walt.

American Hazelnut

G5Secure Found in 17 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.135795
Element CodePDBET04010
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderFagales
FamilyBetulaceae
GenusCorylus
Other Common Names
American Hazel (EN) American hazelnut (EN) Noisetier d'Amérique (FR)
Concept Reference
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2024-08-16
Change Date1984-02-29
Edition Date2024-08-16
Edition AuthorsN. Ventrella (2024)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences> 300
Rank Reasons
Corylus americana occurs in open woods and thickets, hillsides, roadsides, along fences, and in waste places of eastern North America from Saskatchewan east to Ontario, Canada; and from Maine south to Georgia, east to Oklahoma, and north to North Dakota in the United States. Little is known about threats or trends, but with a large range extent, over 1,500 occurrences, abundant habitat, broad habitat preferences, and no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities, this species is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
The native range of Corylus americana occurs in eastern North America from Saskatchewan east to Ontario, Canada and from Maine south to Georgia, east to Oklahoma, and north to North Dakota in the United States (FNA 1997). Range extent was estimated to be 3.5 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1993 and 2024 (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, SEINet 2024).
Occurrences Comments
By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium records and photo-based observations documented between 1993 and 2024, there are estimated to be over 1,500 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, SEINet 2024). However, this taxon is commonly cultivated, and iNatualist observations (>10,000) were not evaluated for evidence of cultivation (iNaturalist 2024).
Threat Impact Comments
Threats to Corylus americana are not well documented, but potentially include wildfire, succession, development, rights-of-way maintenance, invasive species, predation, and other threats in some places, though there is insufficient data, including anecdotal accounts, to understand scope and severity of threats for this species.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Corylus americana occurs in "moist to dry open woods and thickets, hillsides, roadsides, fencerows, and waste places" (FNA 1997).
Terrestrial Habitats
Forest/WoodlandForest EdgeShrubland/chaparral
Other Nations (2)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
MichiganSNRYes
IllinoisS5Yes
New HampshireSNRYes
MississippiS4Yes
IowaS5Yes
MassachusettsSNRYes
South DakotaSNRYes
West VirginiaS5Yes
LouisianaS1Yes
MissouriSNRYes
OhioSNRYes
NebraskaSNRYes
MaineSNRYes
ArkansasSNRYes
Rhode IslandSNRYes
District of ColumbiaSNRYes
New JerseyS5Yes
New YorkS5Yes
WisconsinSNRYes
North DakotaSNRYes
KansasS3Yes
KentuckyS5Yes
South CarolinaS4Yes
MarylandSNRYes
VirginiaS5Yes
AlabamaSNRYes
TennesseeSNRYes
MinnesotaSNRYes
North CarolinaS5Yes
ConnecticutSNRYes
PennsylvaniaS5Yes
IndianaS5Yes
VermontS2Yes
OklahomaS2Yes
GeorgiaS4Yes
DelawareS4Yes
CanadaN5
ProvinceRankNative
QuebecS2Yes
ManitobaS4Yes
OntarioS5Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined

Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (17)
Arkansas (1)
AreaForestAcres
Clifty CanyonOzark-St. Francis National Forest1,963
Indiana (1)
AreaForestAcres
Mogan RidgeHoosier National Forest8,435
Kentucky (1)
AreaForestAcres
WolfpenDaniel Boone National Forest2,835
Missouri (1)
AreaForestAcres
Swan Creek Rare II Study AreaMark Twain National Forest7,310
North Carolina (4)
AreaForestAcres
Harper CreekPisgah National Forest7,325
Laurel MountainPisgah National Forest5,683
SnowbirdNantahala National Forest8,489
Tusquitee BaldNantahala National Forest13,670
North Dakota (1)
AreaForestAcres
SheyenneDakota Prairie Grasslands14,537
Virginia (4)
AreaForestAcres
Bear CreekJefferson National Forest18,274
Little RiverGeorge Washington National Forest27,292
Mill MountainGeorge Washington National Forest10,840
Mt. PleasantGeorge Washington National Forest8,933
West Virginia (4)
AreaForestAcres
Cranberry Glades Botanical AreaMonongahela National Forest785
Dry River (WV)George Washington National Forest7,331
Falls Of Hills CreekMonongahela National Forest6,925
Little MountainMonongahela National Forest8,172
References (5)
  1. Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 1997. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 3. Magnoliophyta: Magnoliidae and Hamamelidae. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xxiii + 590 pp.
  2. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2024. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2024).
  3. iNaturalist. 2024. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2024).
  4. Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
  5. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).