Vulpia myuros (L.) K.C. Gmelin var. hirsuta Hack.   Festuca megalura   Poaceae (Grass Family)    Europe   Foxtail Fescue

                               April Photo

Plant Characteristics:  Simple or tufted annual, glabrous, 2-6 dm. tall; sheaths and blades smooth; the blades flat or involute; panicle narrow, 7-20 cm. long, with appressed branches; spikelets 4-5 fld., 8-11 mm. long; glumes glabrous, very unequal, the 1st less than 2 mm. long, the 2d 4-5 mm. long; lemma obscurely 5-nerved, 4-6 mm. long, scabrous, ciliate on upper half; awn scabrous, ca. 8-15 mm. long.

Habitat:  Common in open places, below 7000 ft.; many Plant Communities; cismontane s. Calif. to B.C., Mont., L. Calif., most of our Ids., S. Am.  April-June.

Name:  Vulpia, named for J.S. Vulpis, pharmacist-botanist of Baden, Germany. (Hickman, Ed. 1302).  Greek, myos, mouse and oura, a tail.  (Jaeger 160,276).  Mouse tail or fox tail, possibly referring to the narrow inflorescence  (my comment).  Latin, hirtus, hairy.  (Jaeger 119).  Referring to the ciliate lemmas. (my comment).  Greek, megal, large, great.  Megalura may have meant large tail or long tail.  (John Johnson).

General:  Occasional in the study area; may be more common than I suspect as it closely resembles Vulpia myuros var. myuros, a common species in the study area.  Photographed in the Delhi area.  (my comments).        More than 100 spp. of Festuca occurring in temp and cool regions, many being important forage grasses. (Munz, Flora So Calif. 971).      Hitchcock divides the genus Festuca into Vulpia, the annual plants and Eufestuca, the perennial plants.  (Hitchcock 58).

Text Ref:  Hickman, Ed. 1302; Munz, Flora So. Calif. 972; Roberts 48.

Photo Ref:  April 93 #12,14.

Identity: by R. De Ruff, confirmed by John Johnson.

Computer Ref:  Plant Data 445.

Have plant specimen

Last edit 5/3/03

                                              April Photo