Description
Spanish moss ( _ Tillandsia usneoides_ ) is an epiphytic flowering plant that often grows upon large trees in tropical and subtropical climates. It is native to much of Mexico, Bermuda, the Bahamas, Central America, South America, the Southern United States, and West Indies. It has been naturalized in Queensland (Australia). It is known as "grandpa's beard" in French Polynesia.
Most known in the United States, it commonly is found on the southern live oak ( Quercus virginiana ) and bald cypress ( Taxodium distichum ) in the lowlands, swamps, and marshes of the mid-Atlantic and southeastern states, from the coast of southeastern Virginia to Florida and west to southern Arkansas and Texas. While it superficially resembles its namesake, it is neither a lichen such as Usnea nor a moss, and it is not native to Spain.
