Festuca brachyphylla Schult. and Schult. f.
Mantissa 2: 646. 1827.
Festuca brevifolia R. Br., Chlor. Melvill. 31. 1823, non Muhl. 1817. Festuca ovina var. brachyphylla (Schult.) Piper, Contrib. U.S. Natl. Herb. 10: 27. 1906.
Type: Canada. Melville Island, Mr. (J.) Edwards on W.E. Parry Expedition 1819–1820 (Lectotype: BM!, selected by Frederiksen 1982).
Festuca brachyphylla f. flavida Polunin, Bull. Natl. Mus. Canada 94 (Biol. Ser. 24): 90. 1940. Type: Canada. Nunavut: Baffin Island, Lake Harbour, 25–26 Aug. 1927, M.O. Malte s.n., (Holotype: CAN! Isotype: GH!).
Plants caespitose; sometimes becoming loosely caespitose when growing in moss, often appearing greyish from the accumulation of dead sheaths; less than 15 cm high, or more than 15 cm high; 5–35(–55) cm high. Ground-level or under-ground stems not developed horizontally or vertically at, on, or below, the ground. Aerial stems erect; glabrous, or scabrous (sometimes, sparsely near the apex). Leaves mostly in a basal tuft (bluish-green, sometimes with a purple tinge, to pale yellow-green (f. flavida Polunin). Prophylls 8–15 mm long; with smooth veins (glabrescent); lacking pronounced keels (but the veins are prominent). Sheaths with the margins fused only in the lower part (at least half their length when young, decaying into fibres); glabrous, or with trichomes; scabrous (minutely scaberulous if so). Ligules 0.1–0.3 mm long; membranous; hairy; apices truncate; entire, or cleft. Blades 20–100(–200) mm long; 0.3–1 mm wide (when folded); spreading; folded in bud; without auricles (sometimes with an erect swelling at auricle position); folded (tightly folded, with the longer leaves appearing very fine when growing beside other arctic Festuca species); midvein similar in size to other veins in the leaf. Blades adaxial surface hairy (or sparsely scaberulous). Blades abaxial surface glabrous (with a few sparse trichomes towards the apex).
Flowering culm nodes not exposed (usually), or becoming exposed (Sometimes sparsely scabrous near the apex); number visible 0–1. Flag leaf sheaths not inflated (flag leaf blades varying 0.2 cm long (F. hyperborea-like) to 1.5 cm long, sometimes on the same plant, 0.6–1.7 mm wide). Inflorescence paniculate (often spike-like. Culms usually two to three times longer than the basal leaves); dense; linear; 1.5–4(–5) cm long; 5–7(–10) mm wide. Inflorescence. Inflorescence main axis scabrous (scaberulous). Number of inflorescence branches at lowest node 1 (usually). Inflorescence primary branches 1–9 mm long; scabrous (scaberulous); with appressed secondary branches. Spikelets. Spikelets pedicellate; disarticulating above the glumes; laterally compressed; lanceolate; 4–8.5 mm long; 1.5–3 mm wide. Florets per spikelet 2–4(–6). Glumes. First glume 0.7–0.8 × the length of the second glume; 0.4–0.5 × spikelet length; 1.2–3.3 mm long (0.2–0.5 mm wide); lanceolate; glabrous; margins ciliate; veins 1; apex acuminate. Second glume 0.4–0.9 × as long as the spikelet; shorter than the lowest floret; lanceolate; (2.4–)2.9–4.6 mm long (0.3–0.9 mm wide); glabrous; veins 3. Rachilla internode 0.6–1 mm long; hairy. Rachilla not pronounced between the florets; extending beyond the uppermost floret. Callus not differentiated. Lemmas. Lemma 3–5.2 mm long; lanceolate; rounded on the back; surface dull; surface sparsely scabrous; veins 5. Lemma apex acuminate, or acute; erose; glabrous; awned. Awn arising from the tip; 0.8–2.5 mm long. Palea well developed; (3.1–)3.7–5.6 mm long; with scabrous veins. Perianth reduced to lodicules. Anthers (0.5–)0.7–1(–1.3) mm long. Styles 2. Fruit sessile. Fruit dry; indehiscent. Fruit 2 mm long (glabrous). Seeds 1.
Chromosome information. 2n = 42 and 44 (Löve and Löve (1975) 14 counts. A count of 2n = 28 was published as applying to a specimen of F. brachyphylla by Mosquin and Hayley (1966) M. and H. 6458, (Voucher at DAO). but the specimen was re-examined by the first author in 1994 and considered to be F. hyperborea.).
Distribution. Circumpolar. Arctic, or alpine. Range in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago widespread. Arctic Islands: Baffin, Devon, Ellesmere, Axel Heiberg, Parry Islands, Banks, Victoria, Somerset, King William, Southampton, Coats.
Ecology and habitat. Substrates: along streams, river terraces, tundra (occasionally Salix barrens), slopes, ridges (raised rims of polygons or moraines), seashore; imperfectly drained moist areas, on solifluction slopes (rarely), dry, moderately well drained; acidic, or calcareous (slightly), or nitrophilous (e.g. fox dens and owl perches); rocks, gravel, sand (sometimes coarse), silt, clay (wet, calcareous); with high organic content (occasionally). Habitats: Very commonly on sand and dry gravel, in river beds or along the banks. This species has been found in wet meadows on Ellesmere Island, and specimens from such habitats often have small trichomes on culms and leaves.
Taxon as an environmental indicator. An early coloniser of dry, often sandy, usually slightly acidic conditions. Reddish plants are indicative of added nitrogen in the environment, either from the influence of humans or animals, as observed around beaches, fox dens, or owl perches.
Notes. A phenotypically plastic, hexaploid species, this is the most widespread Festuca in the Arctic Islands. (Aiken et al. 1993, 1995).
Illustrations. • Colour forms. Plants showing adjacent height forms and colour morphs with pale or purple inflorescences. Nunavut, Cormack Inlet off Frobisher Bay. Several collections documenting this were made in Sept. 1989, by S.G. Aiken and deposited at. (CAN). • Height forms. Plants collected to show the range of height forms found at a beach, Sept. 1989. Nunavut, Baffin Island, Cormack Inlet. Sept. 1989. Aiken. (CAN). • Brunette colour form. Plants with deep purple inflorescences. Nunavut, Baffin Island, Iqaluit, near causeway. September, 1989. • Redhead colour form. Plants with a conspicuously red colour to the inflorescences. When transplanted this colour did not persist. It is suspected that it was induced by anthropogenic influences at the collection site. Nunavut, Baffin Island, Iqaluit, near Causeway. (CAN). • Lectotype specimen. Erect plants with shedding spikelets. Aspects of the spikelets are similar to Festuca edlundiae also found on Melville Island, but the erect stature of the plants is more typical of F. brachphylla. Melville Is., 1819–1820, Mr. Edwards on W.E. Parry expedition. (Lectotype: BM, selected by Frederiksen 1982). • Isotype specimen var. flavida. The albino form of this species has been named Festuca brachyphylla var. flavida. Nunavut, Baffin Island, Kimmirut(25–26 Aug. 1927 M.O. Malte 643. (Isotype: GH). • Distribution map.
Cite this publication as: ‘S.G. Aiken, L.L. Consaul, and M.J. Dallwitz. 1995 onwards. Poaceae of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago: Descriptions, Illustrations, Identification, and Information Retrieval. Version: 10th December 2001. http://www.mun.ca/biology/delta/arcticf/’. Dallwitz (1980), Dallwitz, Paine and Zurcher (1993, 1995, 2000) , and Aiken, Dallwitz et al. (1999) should also be cited (see References).
