''Dactylis'' is a genus of

Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago ...

n and

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

n plants in the

bluegrass subfamily The Pooideae are the largest subfamily of the grass family Poaceae, with about 4,000 species in 15 tribes and roughly 200 genera. They include some major cereals such as wheat, barley, oat, rye and many lawn and pasture grasses. They are often ...

within the grass family. ''Dactylis'' is native to North Africa, they are found throughout the world, and are an invasive species. They are known in English as cock's-foot or cocksfoot grasses, also sometimes as orchard grasses.

Taxonomy

The genus has been treated as containing only a single species ''

Dactylis glomerata ''Dactylis Glomerata'' is the sixth studio album by Swedish doom metal band Candlemass, released in 1998. This was their first album released since their split in 1994. The album was originally destined to be the second release by Candlemass m ...

'' by many authors, treating variation in the genus at only subspecific rank within ''D. glomerata'',Flora Europaea
''Dactylis glomerata''
Flora of China Town
''Dactylis''
/ref> but more recently, there has been a trend to accept two species,Germplasm Resources Information Network
Species Records of ''Dactylis''''Dactylis glomerata''.
/ref> while some authors accept even more species in the genus, particularly island endemic species in

Macaronesia Macaronesia (Portuguese: ''Macaronésia,'' Spanish: ''Macaronesia'') is a collection of four volcanic archipelagos in the North Atlantic, off the coasts of Africa and Europe. Each archipelago is made up of a number of Atlantic oceanic islands ...

.Schönfelder, P., & Ludwig, D. (1996). Dactylis metlesicsii (Poaceae), eine neue Art der Gebirgsvegetation von Tenerife, Kanarische Inseln. ''Willdenowia'' 26 (1–2): 217–223
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Description

''Dactylis'' species are perennial grasses, forming dense tussocks growing to 15–140 centimetres tall, with leaves 20–50 cm long and up to 1.5 cm broad, and distinctive tufted triangular

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

heads comprising a panicle 10–15 cm long, turning pale grey-brown at seed maturity. The spikelets are 5–9 mm long, typically containing two to five flowers. The stems have a flattened base, which distinguishes them from many other grasses.Interactive Flora of NW Europ
''Dactylis glomerata'' (Cock's-foot)
/ref>FAO factsheet: ''Dactylis glomerata''
/ref> ;Accepted speciesKew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> * ''

'' L. -

and

; naturalized in southern

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, Australia, the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

, and various oceanic islands * '' Dactylis smithii'' Link - Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Madeira ;Formerly included Many species now considered better suited to other genera: '' Aeluropus

Ammochloa ''Ammochloa'' is a genus of Mediterranean plants in the grass family, Poaceae. ; Species * '' Ammochloa involucrata'' Murb. - Morocco * '' Ammochloa palaestina'' Boiss. - Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Palestine, Israel, Jordan ...

Cutandia ''Cutandia'' is a genus of Asian and Mediterranean plants in the grass family. It is native to lands extending from Portugal and Cape Verde to Pakistan and Kazakhstan. ; Species * '' Cutandia dichotoma'' (Forssk.) Trab. - Asia + Africa from Alge ...

Desmostachya ''Desmostachya'' is a genus of grass in the family Poaceae. Taxonomy The genus ''Desmostachya'' was originally published as ''Eragrostis'' sect. ''Desmostachya'' in ''The Flora of British India'' 7: 324. 1897. Somehow two prominent botanists, Jo ...

Dinebra

Elytrophorus ''Elytrophorus'' is a genus of Asian, African, and Australian plants in the grass family.Eragrostis ''Eragrostis'' is a large and widespread genus of plants in the grass family, found in many countries on all inhabited continents and many islands. ''Eragrostis'' is commonly known as lovegrass or canegrass. The name of the genus is derived fr ...

Festuca ''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on ever ...

Koeleria ''Koeleria'' is a common and widespread genus of plants in the grass family, found on all continents except Antarctica and on various oceanic islands. It includes species known generally as Junegrasses. The genus was named after German botanist ...

Odyssea ''Odyssea'' is a genus of African and Arabian plants in the grass family. The genus is named after the ancient Greek tale "The Odyssey," in allusion to the long journey the type species has been taken through nine genera before settling in this ...

Poa Rostraria Schismus

Spartina ''Spartina'' is a taxon of plants in the grass family, frequently found in coastal salt marshes. Its species are commonly known as cordgrass or cord-grass, and are native to the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean in western and southern Europe, nort ...

Tribolium

Trisetaria ''Trisetaria'' is a genus of plants in the grass family, native to Asia and to the Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: o ...

Wangenheimia'' * ''Dactylis fasciculata'' Lam. - now ''

Spartina alterniflora ''Sporobolus alterniflorus'', or synonymously known as ''Spartina alterniflora'', the smooth cordgrass, saltmarsh cordgrass, or salt-water cordgrass, is a perennial deciduous grass which is found in intertidal wetlands, especially estuarine salt ...

'' * ''Dactylis maritima'' Walter - now ''

Ecology

''Dactylis'' is most commonly known as orchard grass. Orchard grasses are suited for habitats like waste lands and

meadows A meadow ( ) is an open habitat, or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non-woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows may be naturally occurring or artificia ...

. These grasses are able to grow in dry and mildly wet areas. They are a food source for many species of insects and birds. The insect and animals consume the grass's the seeds, leaves, and roots. ''Dactylis'', orchard grass, supports meadow ecosystems by feeding many insects and birds that dominate the areas; these species include: beetles, grasshoppers, larvae, caterpillars, sparrows, and horned larks. Snakes, small mammals, and insects also use orchard grass as a means of shelter and stealth through grass lands.

Cytology

The taxa show several different levels of

polyploidy Polyploidy is a condition in which the biological cell, cells of an organism have more than one pair of (Homologous chromosome, homologous) chromosomes. Most species whose cells have Cell nucleus, nuclei (eukaryotes) are diploid, meaning they ha ...

. The taxa show three levels of polyploidy, including tetraploid, diploid, and hexaploidy. ''Dactylis glomerata'' subsp. ''glomerata'' and ''D. glomerata'' subsp. ''hispanica'' are tetraploid forms with 28 chromosomes. Several of the other taxa, including ''D. glomerata''. subsp. ''himalayensis'' (syn. ''D. himalayensis''), ''D. glomerata'' subsp. ''lobata'' (syn. ''D. polygama''), ''D. metlesicsii'', and some forms of ''D. smithii'', are diploid with 2''n'' = 14; hexaploids with 42 chromosomes also occur rarely.Míka, V., Kohoutek, A., & Odstrèilová, V. (2002). Characteristics of important diploid and tetraploid subspecies of ''Dactylis'' from point of view of the forage crop production. ''Rostlinná Výroba'' 48 (6): 243–248
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''Dactylis'' are reproductively able to produce natural triploid and pentaploid. This occurs in habitats of large populations of diploid and tetraploid ''Dactylis'' showing one way gene flow.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1047931 Pooideae Poaceae genera Bunchgrasses of Africa Bunchgrasses of Asia Bunchgrasses of Europe Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus