''Achnatherum thurberianum'' is a species of

grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns a ...

known by the common name Thurber's needlegrass. It is native to the western United States, where it occurs from

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

and east to

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

and

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to t ...

.Archer, Amy J. 2000
''Achnatherum thurberianum''.
In: Fire Effects Information System, nline U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. This is a tufted perennial grass with erect stems reaching about 75 centimeters in maximum height. The tuft of stems may be circular in shape as the stems in the center die first. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are forme ...

is a narrow

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

up to 15 centimeters long by 2.5 wide. The spikelet has a sharp tip and a long, hairy awn which may exceed 5''Achnatherum thurberianum''.
Grass Manual Treatment.''Achnatherum thurberianum''.
Jepson Manual Treatment. to 10''Achnatherum thurberianum''.
The Nature Conservancy. centimeters in length. This is a common grass in many plant communities in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Thou ...

and

Great Basin The Great Basin is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds, those with no outlets, in North America. It spans nearly all of Nevada, much of Utah, and portions of California, Idaho, Oregon, Wyoming, and Baja California. It is noted fo ...

in the US. It is a dominant species in many areas, and may grow alongside other common grasses such as

bluebunch wheatgrass ''Pseudoroegneria spicata'' is a species of grass known by the common name bluebunch wheatgrass. This native western North American perennial bunchgrass is also known by the scientific synonyms ''Elymus spicatus'' and ''Agropyron spicatum''. The g ...

(''Pseudoroegneria spicata''), Idaho fescue (''Festuca idahoensis''), and needle-and-thread grass (''Hesperostipa comata''). It can be found in sagebrush and pinyon-juniper woodland. It is a

climax species Climax species, also called late seral, late-successional, K-selected or equilibrium species, are plant species that can germinate and grow with limited resources; e.g., they need heat exposure or low water availability. They are the species wi ...

, occurring in undisturbed plant communities. This grass provides food for livestock and wildlife. It is forage for cattle, sheep, and wild horses.

Black-tailed jackrabbit The black-tailed jackrabbit (''Lepus californicus''), also known as the American desert hare, is a common hare of the western United States and Mexico, where it is found at elevations from sea level up to . Reaching a length around , and a ...

s often consume it. Juvenile

pronghorn The pronghorn (, ) (''Antilocapra americana'') is a species of artiodactyl (even-toed, hoofed) mammal indigenous to interior western and central North America. Though not an antelope, it is known colloquially in North America as the American a ...

eat the grass when it is young. Many grazing animals avoid the grass when it matures, because the spikelets are sharp and hard. At this point the seeds are consumed by birds and small mammals. Some animals, such as the

Sage Grouse Sage-grouse are grouse belonging to the bird genus ''Centrocercus.'' The genus includes two species: the Gunnison grouse (''Centrocercus minimus'') and the greater sage-grouse (''Centrocercus urophasianus''). These birds are distributed throug ...

, use the grass for cover.

References

External links

USDA Plants Profile for ''Achnatherum thurberianum'' (Thurber's needlegrass)Jepson Manual treatment for ''Achnatherum thurberianum''CalPhotos Photo Gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4673862 thurberianum Bunchgrasses of North America Grasses of the United States Native grasses of California Flora of the Northwestern United States Flora of the California desert regions Flora of the Great Basin Flora of Nevada Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of the Transverse Ranges