Alopecurus aequalis

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Monocots
Cladus: Commelinids
Ordo: Poales

Familia: Poaceae
Subfamilia: Pooideae
Tribus: Poeae
Subtribus: Alopecurinae
Genus: Alopecurus
Species: Alopecurus aequalis
Name

Alopecurus aequalis Sobol., 1799
Synonyms

Homotypic
Alopecurus geniculatus var. aequalis (Sobol.) Paunero, Anales Jard. Bot. Madrid 10: 312 (1852).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. aequalis (Sobol.) Fiori, Nuov. Fl. Italia 1: 92 (1923).
Heterotypic
Alopecurus aristulatus Michx., Fl. Bor.-Amer. 1: 43 (1803).
Alopecurus fulvus Sm., Engl. Bot.: t. 1467 (1805).
Alopecurus subaristatus Pers., Syn. Pl. 1: 80 (1805), nom. superfl.
Alopecurus geniculatus var. natans Wahlenb., Fl. Lapp.: 22 (1812).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. aristulatus (Michx.) Torr., Fl. N. Middle United States 1: 97 (1823).
Alopecurus konradii Opiz ex Mert. & W.D.J.Koch in J.C.Röhling, Deutschl. Fl., ed. 3, 1: 481 (1823), pro syn.
Alopecurus paludosus P.Beauv. ex Mert. & W.D.J.Koch in J.C.Röhling, Deutschl. Fl., ed. 3, 1: 481 (1823).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. muticus G.Schäfer, Trier Fl. 1: 36 (1826).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. paludosus Hochst., Enum. Pl. Germ.: 9 (1826).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. paludosus (P.Beauv. ex Mert. & W.D.J.Koch) C.C.Gmel., Fl. Bad. 4: 46 (1826).
Alopecurus caespitosus Trin., Sp. Gram. 3: t. 241 (1829).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. natans Guépin, Fl. Maine-et-Loire: 26 (1830), nom. illeg.
Alopecurus geniculatus var. fulvus (Sm.) Schrad., Linnaea 12: 424 (1838).
Alopecurus geniculatus subsp. fulvus (Sm.) Hartm., Sv. Norsk Exc.-Fl.: 11 (1846).
Alopecurus diandrus Griff., Not. Pl. Asiat. 3: 11 (1851).
Alopecurus aequalis var. fulvus (Sm.) Sond., Fl. Hamburg.: 32 (1852).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. caesius Neilr., Fl. Nied.-Oesterr.: 36 (1859).
Alopecurus caesius Schur, Enum. Pl. Transsilv.: 727 (1866), pro syn.
Alopecurus palustris subsp. fulvus (Sm.) Syme in J.E.Smith, Engl. Bot., ed. 3B, 11: 23 (1872).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. robustus Vasey, Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 15: 13 (1888).
Alopecurus fulvus subsp. intermedius Blytt, Nye Bidrag Skand. Norge, Christiania 1(3): 8 (1892).
Alopecurus geniculatus f. nigricans Beckh., Fl. Westfalen: 95 (1893).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. fulvus (Sm.) Scribn., Mem. Torrey Bot. Club 5: 38 (1894).
Alopecurus howellii var. merriamii Beal, Grass. N. Amer. 2: ? (1896).
Alopecurus howellii var. merrimanii Beal, Grass. N. Amer. 2: 278 (1896).
Alopecurus fulvus f. violaceus Hack. in P.K.H.Dusén, Ergebn. Schwed. Exp. Magell. 3(5): 218 (1900).
Alopecurus geniculatus f. natans (Wahlenb.) Neuman, Sver. Fl.: 781 (1901).
Alopecurus fulvus var. natans Gross, Allg. Bot. Z. Syst. 8: 30 (1902).
Alopecurus geniculatus f. robustior Hack. ex Kneuck., Allg. Bot. Z. Syst. 11: 54 (1905).
Alopecurus aristulatus var. natans (Wahlenb.) Simmons, Ark. Bot. 6(17): 4 (1907).
Alopecurus fulvus var. interruptus Erdner, Ber. Naturwiss. Vereins Schwaben Neuburg 39-40: 99 (1911).
Alopecurus fulvus var. sibiricus Krylov, Fl. Alt. 7: 1581 (1914).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. amurensis (Kom.) Roshev., Izv. Imp. Bot. Sada Petra Velikago 14: 54 (1914).
Alopecurus geniculatus var. armurensis B.Fedtsch., Izv. Imp. Bot. Sada Petra Velikago 14(Suppl. 2): 54 (1915), nom. nud.
Tozzettia fulva (Sm.) Lunell, Amer. Midl. Naturalist 4: 216 (1915).
Alopecurus amurensis Kom., Izv. Imp. Bot. Sada Petra Velikago 16: 151 (1916).
Alopecurus aequalis f. natans (Wahlenb.) Holmb., Skand. Fl. 1: 137 (1922).
Alopecurus aristulatus var. merriamii (Beal) H.St.John, Bot. Explor. St. Lawrence: 42 (1922).
Alopecurus aequalis var. natans (Wahlenb.) Fernald, Rhodora 27: 198 (1925).
Alopecurus aequalis var. macrostachys Podp., Kvetna Mor. Rakousk. Slezska 6: 396 (1926).
Alopecurus fulvus var. amurensis (Kom.) Roshev., Trudy Glavn. Bot. Sada 39: 193 (1927).
Alopecurus aequalis f. fluitans Parodi, Revista Fac. Agron. Veterin. 7: 366 (1931).
Alopecurus aequalis f. foliosus Parodi, Revista Fac. Agron. Veterin. 7: 366 (1931).
Alopecurus aequalis f. violaceus (Hack.) Parodi, Revista Fac. Agron. Veterin. 7: 365 (1931).
Alopecurus brachytrichus Ohwi, Acta Phytotax. Geobot. 5: 51 (1936).
Alopecurus aequalis var. amurensis (Kom.) Ohwi, Bot. Mag. (Tokyo) 55: 360 (1941).
Alopecurus aequalis var. brachytrichus (Ohwi) Ohwi, Bot. Mag. (Tokyo) 55: 360 (1941).
Alopecurus aequalis subsp. natans (Wahlenb.) Á.Löve & D.Löve, Acta Horti Gothob. 20: 94 (1956).
Alopecurus aequalis var. sonomensis Rubtzov, Leafl. W. Bot. 9: 170 (1961).
Alopecurus aequalis subsp. amurensis (Kom.) Hultén, Circumpolar Pl. 1: 108 (1964).
Alopecurus aequalis subsp. aristulatus (Michx.) Tzvelev, Arktich. Fl. SSSR 2: 36 (1964).
Alopecurus aequalis f. nigricans (Beckh.) Soó, Acta Bot. Acad. Sci. Hung. 17: 123 (1971 publ. 1972).
Alopecurus aequalis var. aristulatus (Michx.) Tzvelev, Novosti Sist. Vyssh. Rast. 8: 20 (1971).
Alopecurus aequalis var. fluitans (Parodi) Mariano, Fl. Patagonica 3: 348 (1978).
Alopecurus aequalis var. violaceus (Hack.) Mariano, Fl. Patagonica 3: 348 (1978).

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Continental: Temp. Northern Hemisphere to Andes
Afghanistan, Alaska, Alberta, Aleutian Is., Algeria, Altay, Amur, Argentina South, Arizona, Austria, Baltic States, Belarus, Belgium, British Columbia, Bulgaria, Buryatiya, California, Central European Rus, China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, Chita, Colombia, Colorado, Connecticut, Czechoslovakia, Delaware, Denmark, East European Russia, East Himalaya, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Greenland, Guatemala, Hungary, Iceland, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Inner Mongolia, Iowa, Irkutsk, Italy, Japan, Kamchatka, Kansas, Kazakhstan, Kentucky, Khabarovsk, Kirgizstan, Korea, Krasnoyarsk, Krym, Kuril Is., Labrador, Magadan, Maine, Manchuria, Manitoba, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mongolia, Montana, Morocco, Myanmar, Nansei-shoto, Nebraska, Nepal, Netherlands, Nevada, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Newfoundland, North Caucasus, North Dakota, North European Russi, Northwest European R, Northwest Territorie, Norway, Nova Scotia, Ohio, Ontario, Oregon, Pakistan, Pennsylvania, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Primorye, Prince Edward I., Québec, Romania, Sakhalin, Saskatchewan, South Dakota, South European Russi, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tadzhikistan, Taiwan, Tennessee, Tibet, Transcaucasus, Turkey, Turkey-in-Europe, Turkmenistan, Tuva, Ukraine, Utah, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Himalaya, West Siberia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Xinjiang, Yakutskiya, Yugoslavia, Yukon
Introduced into:
New South Wales, New Zealand North, New Zealand South, South Australia, Victoria

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References
Primary references

Sobolewsky, G.F. 1799. Flora Petropolitana 16.

Additional references

Chang, C.S., Kim, H. & Chang, K.S. 2014. Provisional checklist of vascular plants for the Korea peninsula flora (KPF). 563 p. Seoul: T.B. Lee Herbarium. PDF Reference page.

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2022. Alopecurus aequalis in World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2022 August 12. Reference page.
Hassler, M. 2022. Alopecurus aequalis. World Plants: Synonymic Checklists of the Vascular Plants of the World In: Roskovh, Y., Abucay, L., Orrell, T., Nicolson, D., Bailly, N., Kirk, P., Bourgoin, T., DeWalt, R.E., Decock, W., De Wever, A., Nieukerken, E. van, Zarucchi, J. & Penev, L., eds. 2022. Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life. Published online. Accessed: 2022 August 12. Reference page.
Tropicos.org 2022. Alopecurus aequalis. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published online. Accessed: 12 August 2022.
International Plant Names Index. 2022. Alopecurus aequalis. Published online. Accessed: August 12 2022.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Alopecurus aequalis in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service.

Vernacular names
Deutsch: Rotgelber Fuchsschwanz
English: Orange Foxtail, Short Foxtail
suomi: Rantapuntarpää
हिन्दी: jalajambuk
日本語: スズメノテッポウ（雀の鉄砲）
한국어: 뚝새풀
Nederlands: Rosse vossenstaart
polski: Wyczyniec czerwonożółty
中文: 看麦娘

Alopecurus aequalis is a common species of grass known as shortawn foxtail or orange foxtail.[3] It is native to much of the temperate Northern Hemisphere from Eurasia to North America. It is most commonly found in areas near fresh water, such as the margins of ponds and ditches.[4]

Description

This perennial bunchgrass is variable in appearance. It produces bunches of erect stems between 20 and about 70 centimeters in height.[5] The leaves are 2-15 cm long; the basal leaves are the longest and the few stem leaves are long-sheathing.[5] The cylindrical inflorescence is a few centimeters long and blooms with white to yellow to bright orange anthers about 0.5-0.8 mm long.[6]

The leaf blades are narrow, about 1-8 mm wide. The flowers are attached to branches, rather than the main axis of the inflorescence.[7]
Ecology

A. aequalis has a C3 metabolism, grows best in full to partial sun, and can tolerate shallow standing water for up to two months during the growing season.[8]

One variety of this species, var. sonomensis, is a rare California endemic grass which is federally listed as an endangered species of the United States.[9]
References

Lansdown, R.V. (2014). "Alopecurus aequalis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2014: e.T164156A1025862. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-1.RLTS.T164156A1025862.en. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
"NatureServe Explorer". Retrieved 2021-05-27.
BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
"Alopecurus aequalis | Online Atlas of the British and Irish Flora". www.brc.ac.uk. Retrieved 2021-05-27.
"Alopecurus aequalis (Shortawn Foxtail): Minnesota Wildflowers". www.minnesotawildflowers.info. Retrieved 2021-05-27.
"Alopecurus aequalis in Flora of China @ efloras.org". www.efloras.org. Retrieved 2021-05-27.
"Alopecurus aequalis (short-awned meadow-foxtail): Go Botany". gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org. Retrieved 2021-05-27.
"Short-Awned Foxtail (Alopecurus aequalis)". www.illinoiswildflowers.info. Retrieved 2021-05-27.
"Determination of Endangered Status for Nine Plants From the Grasslands or Mesic Areas of the Central Coast of California" (PDF). Federal Register. United States Fish and Wildlife Service. October 22, 1997. Retrieved November 6, 2013.