Alopecurus magellanicus
Alopecurus aequalis
alpine foxtail, alpine meadow-foxtail, boreal foxtail, foxtail, vulpin alpin, vulpin boreale
little foxtail, little meadow-foxtail, orange foxtail, short-awn foxtail, short-awn meadow-foxtail, Sonoma alopecurus
(6)10-80 cm, erect or decumbent.
9-75 cm, erect or decumbent.
1-5 cm long, 8-14 mm wide.
1-9 cm long, 3-9 mm wide.
3-5 mm, connate in the lower 1/8, membranous, densely pilose throughout, keels not winged, ciliate, apices acute and parallel;
lemmas 2.5-4.5 mm, connate in the lower 1/2 - 2/3, glabrous proximally, finely pubescent distally, apices usually obtuse, occasionally truncate, awns 2-6(8) mm, geniculate, exceeding the lemmas by 0-5 mm;
anthers 2.3-3 mm, yellow.
1.8-3.7 mm, connate near the base, membranous, pubescent on the sides, keels not winged, ciliate, apices obtuse, sometimes erose, pale green, occasionally purplish;
lemmas 1.5-2.5(3.5) mm, connate in the lower 1/3-1/2, glabrous, apices obtuse, awns 0.7-3 mm, straight, exceeding the lemmas by 0-2.5 mm;
anthers 0.5-1.2 mm, usually pale to deep yellow or orange, rarely purple.
0.7-2 mm.
1-1.8 mm.
1-2 mm, truncate;
blades 4-22 cm long, 2.5-7 mm wide;
upper sheaths inflated.
2-6.5 mm, obtuse;
blades 2-10 cm long, 1-5(8) mm wide;
upper sheaths not inflated.
= 98, 100, 105, 112, 117, 119, ca. 120.
= 14, 28.
Alopecurus magellanicus
Alopecurus aequalis
Alopecurus magellanicus has an arctic-alpine to subalpine circumpolar distribution, but it has not been found in Scandinavia or Iceland. It grows primarily in wet soils in tundra, meadows, along streams, shorelines, gravelbars, and floodplains, and occasionally in somewhat drier forest openings, in fine or silty to stony soils or moss. It is sometimes co-dominant with Dupontia fisheri in the arctic and subarctic portion of its range. The anthocyanic tint of the plant as a whole greatly increases to the north.
In the past, this species has been called Alopecurus alpinus, the name being attributed to Smith. Dogan (1999) pointed out that the name had first been used by Villars for a different species, which meant that this species had to have another name; Dogan used A. borealis Trin., listing A. magellanicus as a synonym but, because A. magellanicus was published first, it has priority and is therefore the correct name.
The morphological variability in Alopecurus magellanicus has prompted recognition of several segregate taxa, A. stejnegeri Vasey and A. occidentalis Scribn. & Tweedy being two of the more conspicuous extremes. The former are small plants occurring on enriched sites in the arctic, usually around seabird or seal colonies where high nutrient levels produce lush vegetative growth; the latter refers to tall-stemmed plants found in the Rocky Mountains. Because such plants are simply extremes in a continuum of variation, they do not merit taxonomic recognition.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Alopecurus aequalis is native to temperate zones of the Northern Hemisphere. It generally grows in wet meadows, forest openings, shores, springs, and along streams, as well as in ditches, along roadsides, and in other disturbed sites, from sea level to subalpine elevations.
Alopecurus aequalis is the most widespread and variable species of Alopecurus in the Flora region. Despite its variability, the only phenotype meriting formal recognition is that found in the low marshes of Marin and Sonoma counties, California. Some high elevation plants of the Sierra Nevada have unusually long awns (exserted by up to 1.5 mm) and anthocyanic spikelets but, like the semi-aquatic ecotype A. aequalis var. natans (Wahlenb.) Fernald, they do not warrant taxonomic recognition.
Alopecurus xhaussknechtianus Asch. & Graebn. is a hybrid between A. aequalis and A. geniculatus, which occurs fairly frequently in areas of sympatry, particularly in drier midcontinental areas from Alberta to Saskatchewan, south to Arizona and New Mexico. The hybrids are sterile and apparently have 2n = 14.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Panicles 3-6 mm wide; glumes 1.8-3 mm long; awns not exceeding the lemmas or exceeding them by less than 1 mm; anthers 0.5-0.9 mm long | var. aequalis |
1. Panicles 4—9 mm wide; glumes to 3.7 mm long; awns exceeding the lemmas by 1-2.5 mm; anthers 1-1.2 mm long | var. sonotnensis |
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