Neostapfia

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Colusa grass
Neostapfia.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Chloridoideae
Tribe: Cynodonteae
Subtribe: Orcuttiinae
Genus: Neostapfia
Burtt Davy
Species:
N. colusana
Binomial name
Neostapfia colusana
Synonyms [2]
  • StapfiaBurtt Davy 1898, illegitimate name not Chodat 1897 (a green alga in family Tetrasporaceae)
  • DavyellaHack.
  • Stapfia colusanaBurtt Davy
  • Anthochloa colusana(Burtt Davy) Scribn.
  • Davyella colusana(Burtt Davy) Hack.

Neostapfia is a genus of endemic Californian bunchgrasses, in the subfamily Chloridoideae of the grass family, Poaceae. [3] [1] [4] [5] [6] The only known species is Neostapfia colusana, with the common name Colusa grass. [1]

Distribution

Neostapfia colusana is endemic to the Central Valley of California, in the northern section's Sacramento Valley and in the southern section's San Joaquin Valley. [1] The bunchgrass grows in vernal pools, which are seasonal shallow freshwater ponds.

It is native to the Central Valley counties of Glenn, Colusa, Yolo, Solano, Stanislaus, and Merced. [7] [8]

This rare grass is a federally listed threatened species in the United States. [9] [3]

Description

Neostapfia colusana is a clumping bunchgrass with distinctive cylindrical inflorescences covered in flat spikelets. The inflorescences are said to resemble tiny ears of corn. They fruit in grains covered in a gluey secretion, and when a plant is mature, each clump becomes brown and sticky with the exudate. The genus was named for botanist Otto Stapf.

Conservation

The plant is limited to vernal pool habitats, a type of ecosystem that is increasingly rare as Central Valley land is consumed by development and agriculture, and damaged by flood-control regimens and other alterations of hydrology. [10]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Nassella</i> Genus of flowering plants

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<i>Pogogyne</i> Genus of flowering plants

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<i>Swallenia</i> Genus of grasses

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<i>Tuctoria greenei</i> Species of flowering plant

Tuctoria greenei is a species of grass endemic to California. Its common names include awnless spiralgrass and Greene's tuctoria. It is included by the California Native Plant Society on list 1B.1. It is also listed by the state of California as rare and by the Federal Government as endangered, having been federally listed on March 26, 1997.

<i>Eriocoma latiglumis</i> Species of flowering plant

Eriocoma latiglumis is a species of grass known by the common names wide-glumed needlegrass and Sierra needlegrass.

<i>Eriocoma occidentalis</i> Species of flowering plant

Eriocoma occidentalis is a species of grass known by the common name western needlegrass. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to California, Colorado, and Arizona and in northeastern Mexico (Chihuahua), where it grows in many types of habitat.

<i>Blepharidachne kingii</i> Species of flowering plant

Blepharidachne kingii is a species of grass known by the common name King's eyelashgrass. It is native to the Great Basin in the United States, where it grows in habitat such as pinyon-juniper woodland. It is rare in California and Idaho, but it is one of the most common grasses of the northeastern deserts of Nevada.

Eryngium pinnatisectum is an uncommon species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae, known by the common names Tuolumne eryngo and Tuolumne button celery.

Eryngium racemosum is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae known by the common name delta eryngo, or delta button celery.

Juncus triformis is an uncommon species of rush known by the common names Yosemite dwarf rush and long-styled dwarf rush.

<i>Lomatium caruifolium</i> Species of flowering plant

Lomatium caruifolium, known by the common name alkali desertparsley, is a species of flowering plant in the carrot family.

<i>Tuctoria</i> Genus of flowering plants

Tuctoria is a genus of three species of grass in the family Poaceae. Spiralgrass is a common name for plants in this genus. These are bunchgrass species that are found in vernal pools of central California and Baja California, Mexico. The plants are annuals that germinate under water in the spring and grow submerged for weeks. After the pools dry down, the grasses initiate a new set of foliage that lasts for one to two months until flowering and fruiting are complete.

Orcuttia inaequalis is a rare species of grass known by the common name San Joaquin Valley Orcutt grass.

<i>Orcuttia pilosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Orcuttia pilosa is a rare species of grass known by the common name hairy Orcutt grass.

<i>Orcuttia viscida</i> Species of flowering plant

Orcuttia viscida is a rare species of grass known by the common name Sacramento Orcutt grass.

Carlquistia is a rare North American genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae containing the single species Carlquistia muirii. Formerly named Raillardiopsis muirii, the plant was reexamined in the 1990s and moved to a new genus of its own, separate from similar and closely related genera, such as Madia. Common names for the species include Muir's tarplant, Muir's raillardiopsis, and Muir's raillardella.

<i>Sidalcea calycosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Sidalcea calycosa is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family known by the common names annual checkerbloom, checker mallow, and vernal pool checkerbloom.

Trifolium bolanderi is a species of clover known by the common names Bolander's clover and parasol clover.

Navarretia ojaiensis is a rare species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name Ojai navarretia.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Jepson (JM2): Neostapfia colusana
  2. Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  3. 1 2 USDA: Neostapfia colusana
  4. Davy, Joseph Burtt. 1898. "Stapfia, a new genus of Meliceae, and other noteworthy grasses." Erythea 6 (11): 109-113, text.
  5. Davy, Joseph Burtt. 1898. "Stapfia, a new genus of Meliceae, and other noteworthy grasses." Erythea 6 (11): plate 1, line drawings of Neostapfia colusana, named as Stapfia colusana
  6. Davy, Joseph Burtt 1899. "Concerning Stapfia." Erythea 7 (43)
  7. Calflora Database: Neostapfia colusana, with county distribution maps.
  8. Biota of North America Program 2013 county distribution maps for Neostapfia colusana
  9. The Calflora Database: Information on California plants for education, research and conservation, with data contributed by public and private institutions and individuals, including the Consortium of California Herbaria. 2015. Berkeley, California
  10. California Native Plant Society Rare Plant Profile