diff --git a/plants/services/perenual.py b/plants/services/perenual.py
index ce94494..97b3f4e 100644
--- a/plants/services/perenual.py
+++ b/plants/services/perenual.py
@@ -4,17 +4,32 @@ from django.conf import settings
 _BASE = 'https://perenual.com/api'
 
 
+class PerenualError(Exception):
+    pass
+
+
 def search_species(query):
-    """Query Perenual species-list endpoint. Returns list of result dicts or [] on any error."""
+    """Query Perenual species-list endpoint.
+
+    Returns list of result dicts on success.
+    Raises PerenualError if the API is unreachable or rate-limited.
+    Returns [] if no API key is configured.
+    """
     if not settings.PERENUAL_API_KEY:
         return []
     try:
         resp = requests.get(
             f'{_BASE}/species-list',
             params={'q': query, 'key': settings.PERENUAL_API_KEY},
-            timeout=5,
+            timeout=10,
         )
         resp.raise_for_status()
         return resp.json().get('data', [])
+    except requests.Timeout:
+        raise PerenualError('Perenual API timed out — try again in a moment.')
+    except requests.HTTPError as e:
+        if e.response is not None and e.response.status_code == 429:
+            raise PerenualError('Perenual API rate limit reached — try again later.')
+        raise PerenualError(f'Perenual API error ({e.response.status_code if e.response else "?"}).')
     except Exception:
-        return []
+        raise PerenualError('Could not reach Perenual API.')
diff --git a/plants/templates/plants/partials/species_results.html b/plants/templates/plants/partials/species_results.html
index 7ec09ab..8dfd6ec 100644
--- a/plants/templates/plants/partials/species_results.html
+++ b/plants/templates/plants/partials/species_results.html
@@ -24,5 +24,9 @@
     </form>
 </div>
 {% empty %}
-{% if q %}<p class="list-group-item text-muted">No results for "{{ q }}"</p>{% endif %}
+{% if error %}
+<p class="list-group-item text-warning">⚠️ {{ error }}</p>
+{% elif q %}
+<p class="list-group-item text-muted">No results for "{{ q }}"</p>
+{% endif %}
 {% endfor %}
diff --git a/plants/tests/test_perenual.py b/plants/tests/test_perenual.py
index 81219bc..41d4b54 100644
--- a/plants/tests/test_perenual.py
+++ b/plants/tests/test_perenual.py
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import pytest
+import requests as req_lib
 from unittest.mock import patch, MagicMock
-from plants.services.perenual import search_species
+from plants.services.perenual import search_species, PerenualError
 
 
 def test_search_returns_empty_without_api_key(settings):
@@ -24,17 +25,25 @@ def test_search_returns_data(settings):
     assert results[0]['common_name'] == 'Rose'
 
 
-def test_search_returns_empty_on_timeout(settings):
+def test_search_raises_on_timeout(settings):
     settings.PERENUAL_API_KEY = 'test-key'
-    with patch('plants.services.perenual.requests.get', side_effect=Exception('timeout')):
-        results = search_species('rose')
-    assert results == []
+    with patch('plants.services.perenual.requests.get', side_effect=req_lib.Timeout):
+        with pytest.raises(PerenualError, match='timed out'):
+            search_species('rose')
 
 
-def test_search_returns_empty_on_bad_status(settings):
+def test_search_raises_on_rate_limit(settings):
     settings.PERENUAL_API_KEY = 'test-key'
     mock_resp = MagicMock()
-    mock_resp.raise_for_status.side_effect = Exception('404')
+    mock_resp.status_code = 429
+    mock_resp.raise_for_status.side_effect = req_lib.HTTPError(response=mock_resp)
     with patch('plants.services.perenual.requests.get', return_value=mock_resp):
-        results = search_species('rose')
-    assert results == []
+        with pytest.raises(PerenualError, match='rate limit'):
+            search_species('rose')
+
+
+def test_search_raises_on_other_error(settings):
+    settings.PERENUAL_API_KEY = 'test-key'
+    with patch('plants.services.perenual.requests.get', side_effect=Exception('network error')):
+        with pytest.raises(PerenualError):
+            search_species('rose')
diff --git a/plants/views/species.py b/plants/views/species.py
index 9a5cfdd..a0fa634 100644
--- a/plants/views/species.py
+++ b/plants/views/species.py
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 from django.shortcuts import render, redirect
 from django.urls import reverse
 from plants.models import Species
-from plants.services.perenual import search_species
+from plants.services.perenual import search_species, PerenualError
 
 _MONTH_MAP = {
     'January': 1, 'February': 2, 'March': 3, 'April': 4,
@@ -12,9 +12,15 @@ _MONTH_MAP = {
 
 def species_search(request):
     q = request.GET.get('q', '').strip()
-    results = search_species(q) if len(q) >= 2 else []
+    results = []
+    error = None
+    if len(q) >= 2:
+        try:
+            results = search_species(q)
+        except PerenualError as e:
+            error = str(e)
     return render(request, 'plants/partials/species_results.html', {
-        'results': results, 'q': q,
+        'results': results, 'q': q, 'error': error,
     })