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Montana Field Guide

Montana Field Guides

Thurber's Needlegrass - Stipa thurberiana
Other Names:  Achnatherum thurberianum

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Status Under Review
Native Species

Global Rank: G5
State Rank: SU

Agency Status
USFWS:
USFS:
BLM:
MNPS Threat Rank:
C-value:

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General Description
Stems 40–70 cm. Leaves: blades 1–2 mm wide, essentially hairless at the throat; ligule 3–6 mm long. Inflorescence a contracted panicle 5–16 cm long. Spikelets 10–15 mm long. Lemmas with appressed hairs, awn 3–5 cm with plumose hairs on the lower portion (Lavin in Lesica 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. BRIT Press. Fort Worth, TX).

Phenology
Specimen coll. 7/28/43, presumably in flower.

Diagnostic Characteristics
Distinguished from Stipa comata by glumes less than 15 mm long, and conspicuously hairy on lower part of awn. Distinguished from other hairy species of Stipa
 by hairs on the awn that are 1 mm long or longer.

Habitat

References
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Citation for data on this website:
Thurber's Needlegrass — Stipa thurberiana.  Montana Field Guide.  .  Retrieved on , from