Vascular Plants of North Carolina
Section: Common Name: Scientific Name: Family:
Account for Ozark Dropseed - Sporobolus ozarkanus   Fernald
Members of Poaceae:
Members of Sporobolus with account distribution info or public map:
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Section 5 » Family Poaceae
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AuthorFernald
DistributionKnown in NC only from the famous mafic glade near Butner in Granville County.

KY to KS, south to TN, AR, and TX; disjunct to northcentral NC.
AbundanceVery rare, apparently found at just a single site. This species is surprisingly not on the NCNHP's tracked list, though it is listed as S1. The website editors strongly suggest it be listed as Significantly Rare.
HabitatOpen mafic glade under a powerline. Occurs with a number of other rare or disjunct species of dry, high pH soil conditions.
PhenologyFlowering and fruiting August-October.
IdentificationOzark Dropseed is a small species, 6 inches to 1.5 feet tall, with slender, delicate stems and leaves, and overall a gray-green color. The lower part of the plant sometimes is bent to the ground. The inflorescences grow at stem ends, are slender, and are dull red-brown color. It is told from S. vaginiflorus by the hairy bases of the leaf sheaths (vs. glabrous in that species).
Taxonomic CommentsSome authors place it in S. vaginiflorus as variety ozarkanus.

Recent molecular research suggests that Calamovilfa and Spartina are nested deeply within Sporobolus. Weakley (2020) proposes that they remain split until a long-term solution is found, as their members are monophyletic.
Other Common Name(s)Ozark Poverty-grass
State RankS1
Global RankG5T5? [G5?]
State Status[SR-D]
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