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Diarrhena americana
Beak grass Taxonomy
Synonyms: Subspecific taxa: Classification: Other taxonomic & nomenclature sources: USDA Plants; ITIS; The Plant List; IPNI Species Distribution
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County Map Legend
Absent: Not known from county Medium confidence: Medium or unknown confidence; often old records or unverifiable observations Medium-high confidence: Often observations by expert botanists High confidence: Often vouchered herbarium records Planted / introduced: Native species introduced outside historic range, or only in planted locations within county (e.g., restorations) Historic / extirpated: Only historic records for the species; likely extirpated (Note that this category is not yet functional) North American distribution maps for this species: FLNA; USDA Plants; BONAP; BISON
Collections, Observations & Flowering by Month [?]
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Collections & Observations by Decade [?]
Species Status
Status/Listing: No Information Notes: Origin: Native
Species Description
General: Monocot, perennial Roots: adventitious Shoots: alternate leaf arrangment; simple leaf type; entire leaf margin; Parallel leaf venation; awl-shaped leaf shape Inflorescence: panicle Flowers: perfect; 3 merous; complete; hypogynous ovary position Fruit: grain Physiology: autotrophic Reproduction: vegetative
Ecology & Natural History
Habitat: Species is distributed at base of limestone bluffs and occasionally on moist calcareous ledges and ravines. ILPIN Notes: Species has shiny, dark green foliage well into winter; recommended as ground cover in shady, wild gardens and shady slopes. Versus var. obovata, this variety has pubescent leaf sheaths, hirsutulous panicle branches, and larger spikelets. Functional Relationships:
Human Relationships:
Wildlife and Livestock Information:
Coefficient of Conservatism (C-value) [?] :
Comments & Questions
IL Plant Response: We have two species recorded for Illinois (D. americana and D. obovata).
For a long time it was thought that Diarrhena americana was restricted to southern Illinois, while D. obovata was statewide (Mohlenbrock 1986, 2002, 2014; Brandenburg in FNA 2007). Now we are starting to see collections labeled as D. americana throughout Illinois. Thus, the distribution of these species in Illinois may still need clarification. It is possible that these more recent records of D. americana in the northern part of the state are planted or introduced from the horticultural trade. The distribution map for D. americana on the Illinois Plants website is currently not accurate because it includes old records of Diarrhena that were made before these species were recognized as being distinct. Therefore, these older records contain both species under single name that cannot be separated. We hope to fix this problem. As far as identification, previous floras have used sheath pubescence to separate these species, but newer treatments do not consider that to be a good character. The size and shape of the lemma does seem to be consistent, although it is slightly overlapping. Other distinguishing features from the genus revision by Brandenburg et al. 1991, published in the Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club can be found here. https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4jvvuRQu7l1dWVkNUJjWVhNSms/view?usp=sharing Diagrams of D.obovata showing the abruptly tapering apex of the lemma and beak of the caryopsis can be seen here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4jvvuRQu7l1a3A5Zkk4empxWFU/view?usp=sharing https://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=diam_001_avd.tif Here are pictures of D.obovata showing the lemma and the bottlenosed beak of the caryopsis (photo credit P. Marcum, Champaign, IL). https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4jvvuRQu7l1UEVlTU5uNFBsSkE/view?usp=sharing https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4jvvuRQu7l1TjhNQzZXanZ4SVk/view?usp=sharing (Note: This response was originally posted on the Midwest Graminoids- Grasses, Sedges, and Rushes Facebook group page, P. Marcum & G. Spyreas)
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Illinois Natural History Survey - University of Illinois
Which species of Diarrhena am I seeing in the Chicago area?