# Dwarf Feather Grass

*Stipa capillata*

The seeds possess hygroscopic awns that twist when wet and untwist when dry, effectively drilling the seed into the earth automatically.

- **Taxonomy:** Plantae › Tracheophyta › Liliopsida › Poales › Poaceae › Stipa
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** grassland
- **Habitat:** Dry steppes, rocky slopes, and semi-arid grasslands with well-drained soils.
- **Diet:** Photosynthetic (Sunlight, CO2, water, and soil minerals).
- **Range:** Central Europe, Central Asia, Siberia, Northern China, Himalayas
- **Size:** 40-90 cm in height
- **Lifespan:** 10-20 years
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Conversion of natural grasslands to intensive agriculture and overgrazing by livestock.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless. The long, needle-like awns can cling to clothing or cause minor skin irritation; avoid walking through dense patches in shorts. If seeds attach to skin, remove them manually.

## About

Stipa capillata is a perennial bunchgrass species in the family Poaceae, native to Europe and Asia.

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/90d1db72-f1ff-46a8-972e-6b94e2ec0690
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/335905
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stipa capillata
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/97802804/medium.jpg (Вячеслав Юсупов, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.