Orcuttia
Encyclopedia
Orcuttia is a genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of grass in the Poaceae
Poaceae
The Poaceae is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called grasses, although the term "grass" is also applied to plants that are not in the Poaceae lineage, including the rushes and sedges...

 family.

There are about five species native to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 and Baja California
Baja California
Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...

. These annual grasses, known generally as Orcutt grass, are all rare and federally protected in the United States.

Species:
  • Orcuttia californica
    Orcuttia californica
    Orcuttia californica is a rare species of grass known by the common name California Orcutt grass.-Distribution:It is native to southern California and northern Baja California, where it grows in scattered locations in vernal pool habitat...

    - California Orcutt grass (endangered)
  • Orcuttia inaequalis
    Orcuttia inaequalis
    Orcuttia inaequalis is a rare species of grass known by the common name San Joaquin Valley Orcutt grass.-Distribution:It is endemic to the Central Valley of California, where it grows only in vernal pools, a rare and declining type of habitat...

    - San Joaquin Valley Orcutt grass (threatened)
  • Orcuttia pilosa
    Orcuttia pilosa
    Orcuttia pilosa is a rare species of grass known by the common name hairy Orcutt grass.-Distribution:It is endemic to the Central Valley of California, where it grows only in vernal pools, a rare and declining type of habitat...

    - hairy Orcutt grass (endangered)
  • Orcuttia tenuis
    Orcuttia tenuis
    Orcuttia tenuis is a species of grass which is endemic to northern California.It grows in vernal pool habitat in the western and northern foothills surrounding the Sacramento Valley....

    - slender Orcutt grass (threatened)
  • Orcuttia viscida
    Orcuttia viscida
    Orcuttia viscida is a rare species of grass known by the common name Sacramento Orcutt grass.-Distribution:It is endemic to Sacramento County, California, where it grows only in vernal pools, a rare and declining type of habitat...

    - Sacramento Orcutt grass (endangered)

External links

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