Deschampsia cespitosa subsp. beringensis

(Hulten) W.E. Lawr.
Common names: Beringian hairgrass
Synonyms: Deschampsia beringensis
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 24. Treatment on page 626.
Please click on the illustration for a higher resolution version.
Illustrator: Cindy Roché

Copyright: Utah State University

Plants loosely cespitose, often glaucous. Culms (15) 70-140 cm. Ligules 4.5-13 mm; blades 5-12 cm long, 2-4 mm wide. Panicles 9-40 cm long, 8-30 cm wide, open, pyramidal; branches divergent, scabridulous to scabrous. Spikelets 4.5-8 mm, greenish, not to somewhat imbricate. Glumes from exceeding to exceeded by the distal floret, lengths usually 5+ times widths; lower glumes 4.3-7 mm, midveins smooth or scabridulous distally; upper glumes 4.4-7.5 mm; callus hairs 0.7-1.6 mm; lemmas 3-5 (7) mm, apices 4-toothed or bifid, usually mostly green, awns 3.3-6.3 mm, straight to weakly geniculate, attached within the proximal 1/3 of the lemma; anthers (1.5) 1.9-2.5 mm. 2n = 26.

Discussion

Deschampsia cespitosa subsp. beringensis is primarily a coastal species, growing up to 800 m along the Aleutian chain and the southern coast of Alaska south to Sonoma County, California, and west to the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. Typical plants are tall, glaucous, have long ligules and spikelets, and long, narrow glumes, but in the Pribiloff Islands and at scattered locations elsewhere, they intergrade with plants that are only 15-25 cm tall and also have smaller spikelet parts (Lawrence 1945). Deschampsia cespitosa subsp. beringensis differs from D. mackenzieana primarily in its coastal distribution and lower chromosome number. It supposedly differs from D. cespitosa subsp. cespitosa in having long glumes but, as the descriptions indicate, there is considerable overlap in this and other characters. The morphological, geographic, and ecological boundaries between the two subspecies need further study.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"decumbent" is not a number.

membranous +  and scarious +
1.5 cm15 mm <br />0.015 m <br /> (?) +
0.19 cm1.9 mm <br />0.0019 m <br /> (0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br />) +
bifid +  and 4-toothed +
Mary E. Barkworth +
(Hulten) W.E. Lawr. +
1 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br /> (?) +
straight +
attached +
subapical +
geniculate +
0.33 cm3.3 mm <br />0.0033 m <br /> (0.63 cm6.3 mm <br />0.0063 m <br />) +
keeled +  and rounded +
pseudopetiolate +  and branching +
midlength +
swelling +
5 cm50 mm <br />0.05 m <br /> (12 cm120 mm <br />0.12 m <br />) +
not evident +
rolled +  and folded +
0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br /> (0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br />) +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
straight +  and slightly flexuous +
scabridulous +  and scabrous +
spikelike +
0.07 cm0.7 mm <br />7.0e-4 m <br /> (0.16 cm1.6 mm <br />0.0016 m <br />) +
Beringian hairgrass +
not rooting +
70 cm700 mm <br />0.7 m <br /> (140 cm1,400 mm <br />1.4 m <br />) +
not woody +
Wash. +, Va. +, Wis. +, W.Va. +, Conn. +, Mass. +, Maine +, N.H. +, N.Y. +, R.I. +, Vt. +, Wyo. +, N.J. +, N.Mex. +, N.C. +, Pa. +, Calif. +, Nev. +, Colo. +, Alaska +, Ill. +, Ind. +, Ariz. +, Idaho +, Alta. +, B.C. +, Greenland +, Man. +, N.B. +, Nfld. and Labr. +, N.S. +, N.W.T. +, Nunavut +, Ont. +, P.E.I. +, Que. +, Sask. +, Yukon +, Md. +, Ohio +, Utah +, Minn. +, Mich. +, N.Dak. +, S.Dak. +, Mont. +, Ky. +  and Oreg. +
liquid +, soft +  and hard +
capillary +
pistillate +  and staminate +
sometimes longer +
1 +  and 2 +
viviparous +  and bisexual +
compressed +
reduced +
3-veined +  and 1-veined +
shorter or longer +
subtending +
acute +  and lanceolate +
subequal +  and unequal +
uncinate +
(3)5-7-veined +
pale +, green +  and purple +
rounded +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br />) +
obtuse +  and acute +
0.45 cm4.5 mm <br />0.0045 m <br /> (1.3 cm13 mm <br />0.013 m <br />) +
inconspicuous +
lanceolate +  and ovatelanceolate +
0.43 cm4.3 mm <br />0.0043 m <br /> (0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br />) +
scabridulous +  and smooth +
concealed +  and prominent +
2 +  and 1 +
well-developed +
2-keeled +
40 cm400 mm <br />0.4 m <br /> (?) +
9cm +  and 40cm +
pyramidal +
8 cm80 mm <br />0.08 m <br /> (30 cm300 mm <br />0.3 m <br />) +
8 cm80 mm <br />0.08 m <br /> (30 cm300 mm <br />0.3 m <br />) +
dry +  and fleshy +
5 +  and 11 +
1 +  and 60 +
bisexual +  and viviparous +
compressed +, ovate +  and v-shaped +
0.45 cm4.5 mm <br />0.0045 m <br /> (0.8 cm8 mm <br />0.008 m <br />) +
1 +  and 3 +
simple +  and compound +
2 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
0 (?) +  and 1/2 (?) +
Deschampsia beringensis +
Deschampsia cespitosa subsp. beringensis +
Deschampsia cespitosa +
subspecies +
membranous +
10 cm100 mm <br />0.1 m <br /> (35 cm350 mm <br />0.35 m <br />) +
0.44 cm4.4 mm <br />0.0044 m <br /> (0.75 cm7.5 mm <br />0.0075 m <br />) +
parallel +  and converging +
stoloniferous +  and rhizomatous +
plant +  and cespitose +
aquatic +  and terrestrial +