Single Record
Participant Info
- Species
- Bromus tectorum [Anisantha tectorum]
- Family
- Poaceae
- CommonName
- cheatgrass, downy brome, downy chess, junegrass, bronce-grass
- Presence
- yes
- Status
- exotic
- EarliestDate
- 1938
- LatestDate
- 2024
- Ecosystem
- shrubland, foothill, montane
- Geobotanical
- Counties
- Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Mineral, Rio Grande, Saguache
- Passes
- WildlifePreserves
- Baca
- Other Localities
- Del Norte
- Comments
- Cheatgrass was first recorded around Denver in the l890's, so it is a little surprising to find that the earliest record from the Watershed is 1938. Often this notorious exotic hid in crop seed, and it could be spread via the hooves of cattle in overgrazed pasture. The barbed serration on the long awns of Bromus tectorum aided its dispersal, of course, but also can work their way between the paws of dogs and, worse, into the ears. Currently in the Watershed, the species has crowded out many other grasses in rocky foothill slopes. Taking advantage of ruderal ground, it has also entered the yard, alleys, and street sides of towns. It is present in every state of the USA, and follows the Rio Grande drainage through New Mexico and down river into Texas as far as the Big Bend region. Note that Bromus tectorum can be confused with B. japonicus, another Watershed exotic, being distinguished from it by the width of the lemmas and the length of the bifid apex of the lemma. Linnaeus, by the way, named the species "tectorum" (of roofs) because it was first found in moldy thatch of cottages in Europe.
- Annotation