Poa atropurpurea

Poa atropurpurea
Conservation status
	; ESA)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Clade:	Commelinids
Order:	Poales
Family:	Poaceae
Subfamily:	Pooideae
Genus:	Poa
Species:	P. atropurpurea
Binomial name
	Poa atropurpurea; Scribn.

Poa atropurpurea is a rare species of grass known by the common name San Bernardino bluegrass. It is endemic to southern California, where it is known from two regions, the San Bernardino Mountains near Big Bear and the Laguna Mountains of San Diego County.

Description

It grows in wet mountain meadows. It is a

dioecious plant, with male and female individuals bearing different flower types. The inflorescence

is somewhat lance-shaped, with branches appressed, spreading upwards along the stem axis. Male and female inflorescences look similar. They may hold up to 70 spikelets each, which are purplish in color.

Habitat

In the San Bernardino Mountains the grass occurs in the pebble plain habitat near Big Bear with other rare plant species.^[1] In San Diego County the grass has been observed on Palomar Mountain and in the meadows of Mount Laguna.^[1] There are fewer than twenty populations of this grass in existence and it is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.^[1]

This species faces a number of threats, including the degradation of its meadow habitat by

ski areas.^[1] Certain populations have been observed to contain only female individuals.^[1] Other threats include grazing of cattle and trampling.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f USFWS. Final rule to determine endangered or threatened status for six plants from the mountains of Southern California. Federal Register September 14, 1998.

External links

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[fed-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f USFWS. Final rule to determine endangered or threatened status for six plants from the mountains of Southern California. Federal Register September 14, 1998.

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