Details Top

Internal ID UUID644043e393abd959808215
Scientific name Vaccinium ovalifolium
Authority Sm.
First published in Cycl. 36: n.º 2 (1817)

Ethnobotanical Use Top

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General Uses Top

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Common products:
- Fresh berries for direct consumption.
- Processed into jams, jellies, sauces, purees, and freeze‑dried or powdered fruit for flavor and color in confectionery.
- Ornamental plants for native landscaping, erosion control, and restoration projects.

Food and beverages (non‑medicinal):
- Berries are used fresh or frozen in pies, muffins, and other baked goods.
- The fruit is processed into beverages such as wines, meads, and non‑alcoholic syrups, and it serves as a flavoring in ice‑cream and yogurt products.
- Canned or bulk‑packed berries are marketed for later culinary use.

Colorants and tanning:
- The fruit’s high anthocyanin content (mainly delphinidin‑ and cyanidin‑glycosides) provides a stable red‑purple hue that has been evaluated for use as a natural food colorant (e.g., in confectionery and beverages).
- Experimental studies have also examined the extract as a natural dye for protein fibers such as wool, though commercial adoption remains limited.

Properties relevant to use:
- Fresh fruit typically exhibits sugar levels around 8–12 °Brix, acidity near pH 3.5, and anthocyanin concentrations exceeding 150 mg C3GE 100 g⁻¹ fresh weight; these properties give the berries a tart‑sweet flavor and strong color suitable for food processing.
- The phenolic profile includes moderate levels of total phenolics (≈400 mg GAE 100 g⁻¹), which contribute to antioxidant activity and color stability.

Standards and regulation:
- In the United States, natural anthocyanin colorants from Vaccinium fruit are regulated under 21 CFR 73 (Food Color Additives) and must comply with the Food Safety Modernization Act for fresh produce.
- The European Union classifies anthocyanin extracts as food additive E 163, requiring compliance with EU regulation (EC) No 1333/2008.
- Canada’s Safe Food for Canadians Regulations apply to processed berry products, while the Alaska Department of Fish and Game issues guidelines for sustainable wild‑harvest of the species.

Sustainability and sourcing:
- Vaccinium ovalifolium is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN (2022) and occurs across sub‑alpine and coastal habitats in Alaska, British Columbia, and the Pacific Northwest.
- The species is primarily wild‑harvested; local regulations cap harvest quantities to maintain viable populations, and many indigenous communities employ traditional seasonal picking practices.
- Commercial cultivation is limited; most supply comes from regulated wild harvest and small‑scale plantings for ornamental use.

Synonyms Top

Scientific name Authority First published in
Vaccinium oblatum J.K.Henry Fl. S. Brit. Columbia : 228 (1915)
Vaccinium chamissonis Bong. Mém. Acad. Imp. Sci. St. Pétersbourg Hist. Acad. 2: 151 (1833)
Vaccinium axillare Nakai Bot. Mag. (Tokyo) 35: 135 (1921)
Vaccinium alaskaense Howell Fl. N.W. Amer. : 412 (1901)

Common names Top

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Language Common/alternative name
English alaska blueberry
English early blueberry
English oval-leaf blueberry
English oval-leaved blueberry
Arabic وكب اليابان
German vaccinium alaskaense
Finnish soikkomustikka
French airelle bleue
French airelle à feuilles ovées
French airelle de l’alaska
Hungarian alaszkai vad áfonya, vad alaszkai fekete áfonya, alaszkai kékáfonya,
Hungarian alaszkai áfonya
Japanese クロウスゴ
Chinese 阿拉斯加蓝莓
Chinese 阿拉斯加藍莓

Subspecies (abbr. subsp./ssp.) Top

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Varieties (abbr. var.) Top

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Subvarieties (abbr. subvar.) Top

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Forms (abbr. f.) Top

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Germination/Propagation Top

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No germination or propagation data was added yet.

Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top

Legend for the distribution data:
- Doubtful data
- Extinct
- Introduced
- Native
  • Asia-temperate
    • Eastern Asia
      • Japan
    • Russian Far East
      • Kamchatka
      • Khabarovsk
      • Kuril Islands
      • Sakhalin
  • Northern America
    • Eastern Canada
      • Labrador
      • Newfoundland
      • Nova Scotia
      • Ontario
      • Québec
    • North-central U.S.A.
      • South Dakota
    • Northeastern U.S.A.
      • Michigan
    • Northwestern U.S.A.
      • Idaho
      • Oregon
      • Washington
    • Subarctic America
      • Alaska
      • Aleutian Islands
      • Yukon
    • Western Canada
      • Alberta
      • British Columbia

Links to other databases Top

Suggest others/fix!
Database ID/link to page
World Flora Online wfo-0001047101
Canadensys 5575
USDA Plants VAOV
Tropicos 12300675
KEW urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:317273-2
The Plant List tro-12300675
Plantarium 39782
PFAF Vaccinium ovalifolium
Open Tree Of Life 349213
Observations.org 136989
NCBI Taxonomy 190544
Nature Serve 2.145179
IPNI 317273-2
iNaturalist 63820
GBIF 2882894
Freebase /m/047r_86
FEIS plants/shrub/vacovl
EPPO VACOF
EOL 583635
Elurikkus 8107
USDA GRIN 41045
Wikipedia Vaccinium_ovalifolium
Tropicos 50312890
KEW urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:858873-1
IPNI 858873-1
GBIF 4174734
USDA GRIN 315255
KEW urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:334264-1
Observations.org 123273
IPNI 334264-1
GBIF 4163893
USDA GRIN 40990
Canadensys 16026
USDA Plants VAAL3
Tropicos 12302445
KEW urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:261771-2
The Plant List tro-12302445
PFAF Vaccinium alaskaense
IPNI 328069-2
iNaturalist 126559
GBIF 2882858
FEIS plants/shrub/vacala
USDA GRIN 40977
KEW urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:261948-2
IPNI 261948-2
GBIF 4170053
Open Tree Of Life 349213

Genomes (via NCBI) Top

Below is displayed the reference genome only!
If you wish to browse all genomes for this plant click here.
Accession Assembly
Name Level Submitter Released Coverage Size
GCA_051295715.2 ddVacOval1_p1.2 Scaffold Canada's national platform for genome sequencing and analysis 2026-01-27 38.13 453.39 Mb

Scientific Literature Top

Below are displayed the latest 15 articles published in PMC (PubMed Central®) and other sources (DOI number only)!
If you wish to see all the related articles click here.
Title Authors Publication Released IDs
Nutrients from spawning salmon influence leaf area, tissue density, and nitrogen‐15 in riparian plant leaves Dennert AM, Elle E, Reynolds JD Ecol Evol 20-Feb-2024
PMCID:PMC10877449
doi:10.1002/ece3.11041
PMID:38380061
Vaccinium uliginosum L. (bog bilberry) and the search for its alleged toxicity: a review Vaneková Z, Holloway P, Rollinger JM Front Toxicol 31-Jan-2024
PMCID:PMC10864615
doi:10.3389/ftox.2024.1358840
PMID:38357417
Species-Specific Responses to Human Trampling Indicate Alpine Plant Size Is More Sensitive than Reproduction to Disturbance Chardon NI, Stone P, Hilbert C, Maclachlan T, Ragsdale B, Zhao A, Goodwin K, Collins CG, Hewitt N, Elphinstone C Plants (Basel) 24-Aug-2023
PMCID:PMC10489881
doi:10.3390/plants12173040
PMID:37687287
Biochemical Evaluation of Some Fruit Characteristics of Blueberry Progenies Obtained from ‘Simultan × Duke’ Hera O, Sturzeanu M, Vîjan LE, Tudor V, Teodorescu R ACS Omega 15-May-2023
PMCID:PMC10233668
doi:10.1021/acsomega.3c00466
PMID:37273613
Ecological and Geographical Structure of the Plant Cover of the East Asian Boreal–Nemoral Ecotone (the Lower Amur Region, Far East Russia) Kryukova MV Plants (Basel) 30-Jan-2023
PMCID:PMC9919551
doi:10.3390/plants12030615
PMID:36771699
“When the Wild Roses Bloom”: Indigenous Knowledge and Environmental Change in Northwestern North America Turner NJ, Reid AJ Geohealth 01-Nov-2022
PMCID:PMC9665002
doi:10.1029/2022GH000612
PMID:36398276
Maternal carryover, winter severity, and brown bear abundance relate to elk demographics Schooler SL, Svoboda NJ, Finnegan SP, Crye J, Kellner KF, Belant JL PLoS One 29-Sep-2022
PMCID:PMC9521920
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0274359
PMID:36173937
Scale‐dependent effects of marine subsidies on the island biogeographic patterns of plants Obrist DS, Fitzpatrick OT, Brown NE, Hanly PJ, Nijland W, Reshitnyk LY, Wickham SB, Darimont CT, Reynolds JD, Starzomski BM Ecol Evol 09-Sep-2022
PMCID:PMC9461347
doi:10.1002/ece3.9270
PMID:36177118
Identification of Lagopus muta japonica food plant resources in the Northern Japan Alps using DNA metabarcoding Fujii T, Ueno K, Shirako T, Nakamura M, Minami M PLoS One 10-Mar-2022
PMCID:PMC8912148
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0252632
PMID:35271584
Exploring the diversity of andean berries from northern Peru based on molecular analyses Tineo D, Bustamante DE, Calderon MS, Huaman E Heliyon 28-Jan-2022
PMCID:PMC8829587
doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e08839
PMID:35169641
Variable intraspecific space use supports optimality in an apex predator Finnegan SP, Svoboda NJ, Fowler NL, Schooler SL, Belant JL Sci Rep 26-Oct-2021
PMCID:PMC8548348
doi:10.1038/s41598-021-00667-y
PMID:34702922
Deer exclusion unveils abiotic filtering in forest understorey plant assemblages Chollet S, Baltzinger C, Maillard M, Martin JL Ann Bot 27-Jun-2021
PMCID:PMC8389181
doi:10.1093/aob/mcab079
PMID:34175940
Effects of Berry Anthocyanins on Cognitive Performance, Vascular Function and Cardiometabolic Risk Markers: A Systematic Review of Randomized Placebo-Controlled Intervention Studies in Humans Ahles S, Joris PJ, Plat J Int J Mol Sci 17-Jun-2021
PMCID:PMC8234025
doi:10.3390/ijms22126482
PMID:34204250
Distribution of Eimeria uekii and Eimeria raichoi in cage protection environments for the conservation of Japanese rock ptarmigans (Lagopus muta japonica) in the Japanese Alps Matsubayashi M, Kobayashi A, Kaneko M, Kinoshita M, Tsuchida S, Shibahara T, Hasegawa M, Nakamura H, Sasai K, Ushida K Int J Parasitol Parasites Wildl 20-May-2021
PMCID:PMC8196045
doi:10.1016/j.ijppaw.2021.05.004
PMID:34159052
Effect of Extracts from Dominant Forest Floor Species of Clear-Cuts on the Regeneration and Initial Growth of Pinus sylvestris L. with Respect to Climate Change Sirgedaitė-Šėžienė V, Marčiulynas A, Baliuckas V Plants (Basel) 02-May-2021
PMCID:PMC8147409
doi:10.3390/plants10050916
PMID:34063305

Phytochemical Profile Top

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Below are displayed the proven (via scientific papers) natural compounds!
You can also contribute to this by clicking here.
Name PubChem ID Canonical SMILES MW Found in Proof
> Phenylpropanoids and polyketides / Cinnamic acids and derivatives / Hydroxycinnamic acids and derivatives / Hydroxycinnamic acids
P-Coumaric Acid 637542 Click to see 164.16 unknown https://doi.org/10.1021/JF0307595
> Phenylpropanoids and polyketides / Flavonoids / Flavones / Flavonols
Quercetin 5280343 Click to see 302.23 unknown https://doi.org/10.1007/S10600-008-0029-5
https://doi.org/10.1021/JF0307595
> Phenylpropanoids and polyketides / Flavonoids / Flavonoid glycosides / Flavonoid O-glycosides / Flavonoid-3-O-glycosides
2-(3,4-Dihydroxyphenyl)-5,7-Dihydroxy-3-(3,4,5-Trihydroxy-6-(Hydroxymethyl)Oxan-2-Yl)Oxychromen-4-One 5378597 Click to see 464.40 unknown https://doi.org/10.1007/S10600-008-0029-5
acs.jmedchem.1c00409_ST.657 5878729 Click to see 434.30 unknown https://doi.org/10.1007/S10600-008-0029-5
Avicularin 5490064 Click to see C1=CC(=C(C=C1C2=C(C(=O)C3=C(C=C(C=C3O2)O)O)OC4C(C(C(O4)CO)O)O)O)O 434.30 unknown https://doi.org/10.1007/S10600-008-0029-5
Avicularine 12308704 Click to see 434.30 unknown https://doi.org/10.1007/S10600-008-0029-5
Guaijaverin 5481224 Click to see 434.30 unknown https://doi.org/10.1007/S10600-008-0029-5
Hyperoside 5281643 Click to see C1=CC(=C(C=C1C2=C(C(=O)C3=C(C=C(C=C3O2)O)O)OC4C(C(C(C(O4)CO)O)O)O)O)O 464.40 unknown https://doi.org/10.1007/S10600-008-0029-5

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