Sporobolus cryptandrus

Sporobolus cryptandrus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Monocots
(unranked): Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Genus: Sporobolus
Species: S. cryptandrus
Binomial name
Sporobolus cryptandrus

Sporobolus cryptandrus is a species of grass known by the common name sand dropseed.[1] It is native to North America, where it is widespread in southern Canada, most of the United States, and northern Mexico.

Habitat

Sand dropseed is a common grass in many types of North American prairie, and grows in a wide variety of habitats, including disturbed areas such as roadsides.

Description

Sporobolus cryptandrus is a perennial bunchgrass forming a tuft of stems growing up to a meter long, erect to decumbent in form. The stem bases are thick but not hard or woody. The leaves are up to 26 centimeters long and rough-haired along the margins. Some stand out from the stems in a perpendicular fashion. The inflorescence is dense and narrow when new, spreading out and becoming diffuse, with some branches sticking straight out, with age. The base of the inflorescence is often sheathed within the top leaf, which spreads out beside it. The grass produces abundant seeds; an individual inflorescence is capable of bearing 10,000 seeds.[2]

Uses

The seeds of this grass provide food for small birds and mammals, including scaled quail (Callipepla squamata) and black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus).[2]

References

  1. ↑ "Sporobolus cryptandrus". Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Database. USDA. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  2. 1 2 US Forest Service Fire Ecology


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