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Big sacaton

Sporobolus wrightii

Also called Big Alkali Sacaton, Sacaton, Giant Sacaton

Big sacaton
Photo: CK Kelly, CC BY 4.0
Family
Poaceae (Grass family)
Grows as
Grass
Water
Likes moisture
Native range
C. & S. U.S.A. to Mexico
Climate
desert or dry shrubland

About

Sporobolus wrightii is a species of grass known by the common names big sacaton and giant sacaton. It is native to the western United States and northern and central Mexico.

Where it grows

This plant grows in plains and desert grassland, shrubsteppe, and desert shrubland habitat. It may occur in desert wetland habitat types such as desert marshes, seasonal lakes, and floodplains. In this kind of habitat it is an important species for preventing erosion and slowing runoff by trapping sediments. It may be a common to prominent or dominant species. It dominates some grasslands in its native range, alongside other common grasses. This type of grassland has been reduced to a fraction of its pristine range by forces such as overgrazing and the channelization of water.

Other Sporobolus plants

Cumberland sandreed · Giant sandreed · Sporobolus schoenoides · Modest prickle grass · Pricklegrass · Swamp Canegrass · Sporobolus cynosuroides · Sporobolus pumilus · Sporobolus michauxianus · Sporobolus spartinae · Sporobolus × townsendii · Cordgrass

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Sporobolus wrightii by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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