Bouteloua aristidoides
Needle Grama
Bouteloua aristidoides, common name Needle Grama. |
The inflorescence of Side-oats Grama. The spikelets that appear attached directly to the rachis. However, they are actually on tiny, short branches, so this is a spike-like seedhead, not a true spike. |
The "branches" often droop or extend straight out. Yes, the tiny teeth sticking out from the rachis are actually branches. |
Sometimes the seedheads are red, sometimes green. Here you can see very tiny red anthers--the grass was in anthesis, spreading pollen. |
Here are two of the more common green spike-like panicles of Bouteloua curtipendula. |
The left-hand inflorescence has very sparce spikelets. It makes the seedhead appear quite different from those with crowded spikelets. |
How to Identify Needle Grama
This is the second most common of the similar "sideoats" gramas, occurring in all counties except Apache.
Similar Species
There are six "sideoats" type gramas in Arizona and this is the
second most common. Watch out especially for Bouteloua curtipendula
(Sideoats Grama), which has generally more and much shorter "branches" holding its
often drooping spikelets. The other look-alikes have bushier spikelets with longer
awns, and are mostly restricted to southeast Arizona.
Porter's Melic (Melica porteri) is rather similar in that it consists of short branches
on one side of the rachis. It occurs only in southeast Arizona.