Muhlenbergia filiculmis

Vasey
Common names: Slimstem muhly
Endemic
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 25. Treatment on page 181.

Plants perennial; cespitose, not rhizomatous. Culms 5-30 (40) cm, erect, rounded near the base; internodes smooth or scabridulous. Sheaths longer than the lower internodes, glabrous, becoming flattened and papery or ribbonlike at maturity; ligules 2-4 (5) mm, membranous, acute; blades 2-6 cm long, 0.4-1.6 mm wide, tightly involute, filiform, stiff, scabrous abaxially, sparsely hirtellous adaxially, apices sharp. Panicles 1.5-7 cm long, 0.4-2 cm wide, contracted, sometimes dense; primary branches 0.1-2.8 cm, mostly tightly appressed or diverging up to 30° from the rachises; pedicels 0.1-2 mm, scabrous. Spikelets 2.2-3.5 mm. Glumes subequal, 0.8-2.5 mm, scabridulous distally; lower glumes 1-veined, awned, awns to 1.6 mm; upper glumes usually 3-veined, apices truncate to acute, 3-toothed, teeth sometimes shortly awned, awns to 0.6 mm; lemmas 2.2-3.5 mm, lanceolate, yellowish mottled with dark green, sparsely appressed-pubescent on the lower portion of the midveins and margins, hairs to 0.4 mm, apices scabridulous, acute to acuminate, awned, awns 1-5 mm, straight or flexuous; paleas 2.2-3.5 mm, lanceolate, acute to acuminate; anthers 1.5-2 mm, purplish. Caryopses 1.3-1.6 mm, fusiform, brownish. 2n = unknown.

Distribution

Colo., N.Mex., Utah, N.Dak., Ariz., Wyo.

Discussion

Muhlenbergia filiculmis grows on rocky slopes, dry meadows, and dry gravelly flats in forest openings and grasslands, at elevations of 2500-3500 m in the southern Rocky Mountains and northern Arizona. Kartesz and Meacham (1999) report it as occurring in North Dakota and Utah, but neither of the sources cited (McGregor et al. 1986; Welsh et al. 1993) supports its occurrence in these states.

It is sometimes difficult to distinguish Muhlenbergia filiculmis from M. montana, but that species has longer spikelets and lemma awns, and leaf blades that are flatter and not sharply tipped.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"decumbent" is not a number.

... more about "Muhlenbergia filiculmis"
0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +
scabridulous +
acute +  and acuminate +
Paul M. Peterson +
1 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
flexuous +  and straight +
multiple +, , +  and single +
curled +
0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br /> (0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br />) +
keeled +  and rounded +
pseudopetiolate +  and branching +
not fused +
intravaginal +, extravaginal +, branching +  and basal +
swelling +
membranous +
not pseudopetiolate +
2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br /> (6 cm60 mm <br />0.06 m <br />) +
filiform +
0.04 cm0.4 mm <br />4.0e-4 m <br /> (0.16 cm1.6 mm <br />0.0016 m <br />) +
spikelike +
with hairs +  and glabrous +
0.13 cm1.3 mm <br />0.0013 m <br /> (0.16 cm1.6 mm <br />0.0016 m <br />) +
triangular +  and dome--shaped +
sometimes longer +
membranous +
Slimstem muhly +
rounded +
5 cm50 mm <br />0.05 m <br /> (30 cm300 mm <br />0.3 m <br />) +
Colo. +, N.Mex. +, Utah +, N.Dak. +, Ariz. +  and Wyo. +
not waisted +
capillary +
pistillate +  and staminate +
bisexual +  and fertile +
round +  and compressed +
reduced +
(0)1(2-3)-veined +
shorter or longer +
subtending +
scabridulous +
subequal +
0.08 cm0.8 mm <br />8.0e-4 m <br /> (0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br />) +
uncinate +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.04 cm0.4 mm <br />4.0e-4 m <br />) +
paniculate +  and racemose +
hollow +  and solid +
scabridulous +  and smooth +
not absent +
yellowish mottled with dark green +
appressed-pubescent +
lanceolate +
0.22 cm2.2 mm <br />0.0022 m <br /> (0.35 cm3.5 mm <br />0.0035 m <br />) +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
membranous +
inconspicuous +
concealed +  and prominent +
2 +  and 1 +
acute +  and acuminate +
0.22 cm2.2 mm <br />0.0022 m <br /> (0.35 cm3.5 mm <br />0.0035 m <br />) +
1.5cm +  and 7cm +
cleistogamous +
spikelike +
0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br /> (2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br />) +
0.01 cm0.1 mm <br />1.0e-4 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +
dry +  and fleshy +
diverging;appressed +
0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br /> (2.8 cm28 mm <br />0.028 m <br />) +
spikelike +
flattened +
1 +  and 60 +
compressed +
0.22 cm2.2 mm <br />0.0022 m <br /> (0.35 cm3.5 mm <br />0.0035 m <br />) +
1 +  and 3 +
compound +  and simple +
2 (?) +  and 3 (?) +
Gramineae +
Muhlenbergia filiculmis +
Muhlenbergia +
species +
membranous +
shorter than to longer than the florets +
7 (?) +  and 13 (?) +
plant +  and cespitose +
aquatic +  and terrestrial +
dioecious +, monoecious +  and synoecious +