Plants native to Svalbard

We document 118 of the 188 species Kew’s World Checklist records as native to Svalbard. Native means native: introduced, extinct and doubtful records are excluded, so this is where these plants are from, not everywhere they now grow.

Documented 118 Native, per Kew 188 Coverage 63% TDWG SVA

Best documented by photographic coverage

Every documented species 118 native to Svalbard

SpeciesAuthorityFamily Photographs
Alopecurus magellanicus Lam. Poaceae 8
Anthoxanthum monticola (Bigelow) Veldkamp Poaceae 8
Arabis alpina L. Brassicaceae 8
Arctagrostis latifolia (R.Br.) Griseb. Poaceae 8
Arctium lappa L. Asteraceae 8
Betula nana L. Betulaceae 8
Calamagrostis purpurascens R.Br. Poaceae 8
Calamagrostis stricta (Timm) Koeler Poaceae 8
Callitriche stagnalis Scop. Plantaginaceae 8
Cardamine bellidifolia L. Brassicaceae 8
Cardamine polemonioides Rouy Brassicaceae 8
Carex bigelowii Torr. ex Schwein. Cyperaceae 8
Carex capillaris L. Cyperaceae 8
Carex dioica L. Cyperaceae 8
Carex incurviformis Mack. Cyperaceae 8
Carex lachenalii Schkuhr Cyperaceae 8
Carex nardina (Hornem.) Fr. Cyperaceae 8
Carex rupestris All. Cyperaceae 8
Carex saxatilis L. Cyperaceae 8
Cassiope tetragona (L.) D.Don Ericaceae 8
Cerastium alpinum L. Caryophyllaceae 8
Cerastium arcticum Lange Caryophyllaceae 8
Cerastium regelii Ostenf. Caryophyllaceae 8
Cherleria biflora (L.) A. J. Moore & Dillenb. Caryophyllaceae 8
Chrysosplenium tetrandrum (N.Lund) Th.Fr. Saxifragaceae 8
Cochlearia groenlandica L. Brassicaceae 8
Comastoma tenellum (Rottb.) Toyok. Gentianaceae 8
Cystopteris fragilis (L.) Bernh. Cystopteridaceae 8
Draba glabella Pursh Brassicaceae 8
Drosera rotundifolia L. Droseraceae 8
Dryas octopetala L. Rosaceae 8
Empetrum nigrum L. Ericaceae 8
Epilobium anagallidifolium Lam. Onagraceae 8
Equisetum arvense L. Equisetaceae 8
Equisetum scirpoides Michx. Equisetaceae 8
Eriophorum angustifolium Honck. Cyperaceae 8
Eriophorum scheuchzeri Hoppe Cyperaceae 8
Euphrasia frigida Pugsley Orobanchaceae 8
Festuca brachyphylla Schult. & Schult.f. Poaceae 8
Festuca rubra L. Poaceae 8
Festuca vivipara (L.) Sm. Poaceae 8
Gnaphalium supinum L. Asteraceae 8
Harrimanella hypnoides (L.) Coville Ericaceae 8
Hippuris vulgaris L. Plantaginaceae 8
Honckenya peploides (L.) Ehrh. Caryophyllaceae 8
Huperzia selago (L.) Bernh. ex Schrank & Mart. Lycopodiaceae 8
Juncus arcticus Willd. Juncaceae 8
Juncus castaneus Sm. Juncaceae 8
Juncus effusus L. Juncaceae 8
Koeleria spicata (L.) Barberá, Quintanar, Soreng & P.M.Peterson Poaceae 8
Lemna minor L. Araceae 8
Lolium pratense (Huds.) Darbysh. Poaceae 8
Luzula spicata (L.) DC. Juncaceae 8
Melica uniflora Retz. Poaceae 8
Mentha arvensis L. Lamiaceae 8
Mertensia maritima (L.) Gray Boraginaceae 8
Micranthes foliolosa (R.Br.) Gornall Saxifragaceae 8
Micranthes hieraciifolia (Waldst. & Kit. ex Willd.) Haw. Saxifragaceae 8
Micranthes nivalis (L.) Small Saxifragaceae 8
Oreomecon radicata (Rottb.) Banfi, Bartolucci, J.-M.Tison & Galasso Papaveraceae 8
Origanum vulgare L. Lamiaceae 8
Oxyria digyna (L.) Hill Polygonaceae 8
Pedicularis hirsuta L. Orobanchaceae 8
Persicaria vivipara (L.) Ronse Decr. Polygonaceae 8
Phippsia algida (Sol.) R.Br. Poaceae 8
Poa alpina L. Poaceae 8
Poa arctica R.Br. Poaceae 8
Poa glauca Vahl Poaceae 8
Poa pratensis L. Poaceae 8
Polemonium boreale Adams Polemoniaceae 8
Potentilla crantzii (Crantz) Beck ex Fritsch Rosaceae 8
Potentilla hyparctica Malte Rosaceae 8
Ranunculus glacialis L. Ranunculaceae 8
Ranunculus hyperboreus Rottb. Ranunculaceae 8
Ranunculus lapponicus L. Ranunculaceae 8
Ranunculus nivalis L. Ranunculaceae 8
Ranunculus pygmaeus Wahlenb. Ranunculaceae 8
Ranunculus sulphureus Sol. Ranunculaceae 8
Rhodiola rosea L. Crassulaceae 8
Rubus chamaemorus L. Rosaceae 8
Rumex alpestris Jacq. Polygonaceae 8
Sabulina rubella (Wahlenb.) Dillenb. & Kadereit Caryophyllaceae 8
Salix herbacea L. Salicaceae 8
Salix polaris Wahlenb. Salicaceae 8
Salix reticulata L. Salicaceae 8
Saxifraga aizoides L. Saxifragaceae 8
Saxifraga cernua L. Saxifragaceae 8
Saxifraga cespitosa L. Saxifragaceae 8
Saxifraga flagellaris Willd. ex Sternb. Saxifragaceae 8
Saxifraga hirculus L. Saxifragaceae 8
Saxifraga hyperborea R.Br. Saxifragaceae 8
Saxifraga oppositifolia L. Saxifragaceae 8
Saxifraga rivularis L. Saxifragaceae 8
Schoenus nigricans L. Cyperaceae 8
Sibbaldia procumbens L. Rosaceae 8
Silene acaulis (L.) Jacq. Caryophyllaceae 8
Silene involucrata (Cham. & Schltdl.) Bocquet Caryophyllaceae 8
Silene uralensis (Rupr.) Bocquet Caryophyllaceae 8
Stellaria humifusa Rottb. Caryophyllaceae 8
Stellaria longipes Goldie Caryophyllaceae 8
Tofieldia pusilla (Michx.) Pers. Tofieldiaceae 8
Vaccinium uliginosum L. Ericaceae 8
Veronica alpina L. Plantaginaceae 8
Viola canina L. Violaceae 8
Woodsia glabella R.Br. Woodsiaceae 8
Koenigia islandica L. Polygonaceae 7
Juncus triglumis L. Juncaceae 6
Draba oxycarpa Sommerf. ex Nyman Brassicaceae 5
Luzula wahlenbergii Rupr. Juncaceae 5
Puccinellia phryganodes (Trin.) Scribn. & Merr. Poaceae 5
Draba nivalis Lilj. Brassicaceae 4
Eutrema edwardsii R.Br. Brassicaceae 4
Carex parallela (Laest.) Sommerf. Cyperaceae 3
Carex subspathacea Wormsk. ex Hornem. Cyperaceae 3
Draba lactea Adams Brassicaceae 3
Festuca richardsonii Hook. Poaceae 3
Micranthes tenuis (Wahlenb.) Small Saxifragaceae 3
Poa alpigena Lindm. Poaceae 3

What this page does not tell you

Kew records 70 more species as native to Svalbard that we do not document. They are real, accepted plants. They have no page here because we could not find three photographs of them licensed for commercial use, and this site publishes no species it cannot show you. That gap is the honest measure of what we are missing, and it is why we print both numbers rather than the flattering one.

This is a checklist of what is native, not a guide to what will grow in your garden, and it carries no care advice and no toxicity claim, because we do not have those from a source we can cite.

Sourcesevery claim on this page

  1. Kew, World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP v16). Native distribution by TDWG level-3 botanical country (SVA). Introduced, extinct and doubtful records excluded. CC BY 3.0. Retrieved 2026-06-04.
  2. World Flora Online Plant List. Accepted names, authorities, classification. CC0. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  3. iNaturalist. Photographs, restricted to CC0 / CC BY / CC BY-SA. Retrieved 2026-06-27.