SCHIZACHYRIUM LITTORALE (Nash) E.P. Bicknell
Coastal
Little Bluestem
FAMILY: Poaceae (Gramineae)
SYNONYMS: Schizachyrium littorale Gould
Andropogon scoparius Michx. var. littoralis (Nash)
Hitch.
Andropogon littoralis Nash.
HABIT: Culms loosely or densely tufted, 5-12 dm tall; flowering and
fruiting August to mid-October.
SIMILAR SPECIES: Similar to the common variety but can be
distinguished from it by its prominently keeled leaf sheaths and the cilia of
the rachis being longer.
TOTAL RANGE: Coastal sands from e. Mass. to N.C.;
disjunct along the shores of the Great Lakes.
STATE RANGE: Post-1970 records from Ashtabula and Lake
counties. Pre-1970 record from Erie
County.
STATE STATUS: 1994 to present: Endangered.
HABITAT: Beaches and sand dunes.
HAZARDS: Beach development.
RECOVERY POTENTIAL: Presumed poor, because it is restricted to
the beaches and sand dunes along Lake Erie where development has destroyed most
of its habitat.
INVENTORY GUIDELINES: Collect complete, mature specimens.
COMMENTS: This species should be sought along the shores of Lake Erie.
Pictures of this variety can be found in Fernald and Griscom (1935).
SELECTED
REFERENCES:
Gould, F.W. 1967. The grass genus Andropogon
in the United States. Brittonia 19(1):70-76.
Fernald, M.L. and Ludlow Griscom.
1935. Three days of botanizing in southeastern Virginia. Rhodora 37: 129-157;
167-189.
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Division of Natural Areas and Preserves
Created: 4/1998 Richard Gardner