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		Richardson's Needlegrass - Stipa richardsonii
		
			
				Other Names:  
				
				Achnatherum richardsonii
			
		
		
		
		
Native Species
			Global Rank: 
G5
			State Rank: 
S4
			
				C-value: 
5
			
			
			
			Agency Status
			USFWS: 
			USFS: 
			BLM: 
		
			
			
				
			
			
				External Links
				
			
		 
	 
	
	 
		General Description
		Stems 40–80 cm. Leaves: blades 1–2 mm wide, scabrous near the throat, ligule <0.5 mm. Inflorescence an open panicle 10–15 cm long. Spikelets 7–8 mm long, pendant. Lemmas appressed hairy, with an awn 1.5–3 cm long (Lavin in 
Lesica et al. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. BRIT Press. Fort Worth, TX).
 
		
	
	
	Species Range
	
		
			Montana Range
		Range Descriptions
			
			
			
					
						
						Native
					 
				
				
					
			 
			
		 
		
	 
	
    		Range Comments
			Throughout the northern Rocky Mountain region (Lavin in Lesica et al. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. BRIT Press. Fort Worth, TX).
			
		
		Observations in Montana Natural Heritage Program Database
		Number of Observations: 308
		
		
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		Map Help and Descriptions
		
		
			
				Relative Density
				
			 
		
			
				Recency
				
			 
		
		 
		
			
				
			
				
			
					
				
			(Observations spanning multiple months or years are excluded from time charts)
		 
		
			
		
		
	
		Habitat
		Open dry settings and open montane understory, including mountain big sagebrush steppe (Lavin in 
Lesica et al. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. BRIT Press. Fort Worth, TX).
 
		
		
	
		Stewardship Responsibility
		
		
	
	References
	
		
			- Literature Cited AboveLegend:  
 View Online Publication
Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 771 p.
 
			- Additional ReferencesLegend:  
 View Online Publication
Do you know of a citation we're missing?
Ament, R.J. 1995. Pioneer Plant Communities Five Years After the 1988 Yellowstone Fires. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 216 p.
Buckmaster, 2015. Community Composition Analysis of Altered Vegetation Communities Following the Release of Grazing Pressure. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozema, MT: Montana State University. 66 p.
Fogelsong, M.L. 1974. Effects of fluorides on Peromyscus maniculatus in Glacier National Park. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, Montana: Montana State University. 52 p.
Grove, A.J. 1998. Effects of Douglas fir establishment in southwestern Montana mountain big sagebrush communities. M. Sc.Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 150 p.
Husby, P.O. 1982. Effects of grazing on vegetation in the Artemisia tridentata-Festuca idahoensis habitat type. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 76 p.
Johnson, T. W. 1982. An analysis of pack and saddle stock grazing areas in the Bob Marshall Wilderness. M.Sc.Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 105 p.
Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2022. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants, Second Edition. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 779 p.
Meier, G.A. 1997. The colonization of Montana roadsides by native and exotic plants. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 45 p.
Quire, R.L. 2013. The sagebrush steppe of Montana and southeastern Idaho shows evidence of high native plant diversity, stability, and resistance to the detrimental effects of nonnative plant species. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 124 p.
 
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