2 16 II.OWJ-.RS Ol- THE SEA-COAST 



destroy it, laws beiiii; Iramcd in [ii\-\ciu its (Icsiruclion. It lias Im-cii 

 used for mats (hence tin- nanu). 



P'SSKNTIAL Sl'KCIFIC ClIARAtTKKS : 



332. A»n)iopliila arcmxna. Link. SKnii tall, erect, leaves involute, 

 glaucous, lon^', jianicle in spike, c\ liiulrical, L^lumes keeled. 



Hedgehog Grass (Cynosurus echinalus. E.) 



This coinnitm maritime s^rass is found in the Xorlli Temperate 

 Zone in Mill and S. I'.unjpe, N. Africa, and West Asia, hut not in 

 early plant beds. The typical station for this species is in the Chainiel 

 Islands, and it is merely an introduction on the coasts of Great Britain, 

 as well as inland, as it is also in Ireland. In its nali\e habitat this 

 y^rass L;rows on the seashore on coasts normalK' sandy. It has been 

 ljrouL;hl (>\"er to I^nqland, ;uid is found on the British coast, but in 

 inland stations it has been dispersed with ballast, coming u]i in waste 

 places, mills, offal yards, and so on. 



The stem is erect, with brnad, tiat leaves, and the plant is in 

 general taller and larger than the Common Dog's Tail Grass. The 

 bracts are comblike, with long points. 



Hedgehog Grass has a dense, spikelike panicle which is narrowed, 

 glossy, lobed, and with comblike branches which have awldike seg- 

 ments, with a membranous edge, and rough. The awns are short, 

 and as long as the palea. The empty glumes are hyaline, or semi- 

 trans[)arent, the tlowering ones green. 



This grass is 1-2 ft. high. The Bowers are in bloom in |uly. The 

 [)lant is annual and propagated by seeds. 



The spikelets are in a dense panicle and dimorphous. The tloral 

 structure is similar to that of other grasses, with 3 stamens, yellow 

 anthers, short and terminal styles, and feathery stigmas. The Bowers 

 are wind-pollinatecl. The anthers and stigma ripen at the same 

 time. 



The fruit is light, and easily dispersed by the wind, the glume and 

 palea being attached to it. 



The plant is a salt-lover and found in saline soil. 



A butterfly, the Small Heath (Coenonvniplia piDuphilns), is the only 

 insect which is attracted by it. 



Cvnosiints, Linnaeus, is from the Greek ciioii, dog, and oiira. tail, 

 from the shape of the spike, and the second Latin name refers to its 

 spinous character. The only name cited by Britten & Holland is 

 Cock's Comb Grass. 



