Melica fugax
Little melic, Little Melic
no rights reserved · CC0
Family: Poaceae · Type: Grass · Native
Melica fugax (Little melic) is a native California grass in the Poaceae family, recognized by smallest size and swollen floret stalks diagnostic.
Little melic is a native perennial grass found in the Klamath Ranges, northern Coast Ranges, Cascade Range, and eastern Sierra Nevada in dry volcanic flats, hillsides, and conifer forests at elevations of 1,200 to 2,200 meters. Flowering from May to July, this delicate grass produces small spikelets with pale green to tan flowers arranged in loose, branching clusters. Growing with slender stems 10 to 60 centimeters tall, it develops clustered underground corms that support its growth. Its narrow leaves are typically 1.2 to 5 millimeters wide, with very short ligules measuring just 0.5 to 3 millimeters long. The grass produces spikelets 4 to 17 millimeters long, with each spikelet containing two to five florets that appear slightly wrinkled and turn brown when dry.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: Co-occurs with 10 species; smallest size and swollen floret stalks diagnostic
Habitat and range
Habitat: dry volcanic flats, hillsides, conifer forest
Elevation: 1200-2200 m
California counties: Plumas, Siskiyou, Butte, Alpine, Fresno, El Dorado, Nevada, Glenn, Mendocino, Lassen, Mono, Trinity, Tulare, Tuolumne, Placer, Sierra, Tehama, Shasta, Calaveras, Modoc, Humboldt, Lake, Stanislaus
Outside California: British Columbia, Idaho, Nevada
Bloom period
Melica fugax blooms May-Jul.
How to tell it apart
vs Oloptum: Melica has club-shaped sterile floret tips; Oloptum has normal pointed spikelets and needle-like rolled leaves.; vs Poa: Melica has club-shaped sterile florets at tips; Poa has all fertile florets and boat-shaped lemmas with cobwebby hairs.; vs Lolium: Melica has club-shaped floret tips and closed leaf sheaths; Lolium has edgewise spikelets and split leaf sheaths.; vs Festuca: Melica has club-shaped sterile florets; Festuca has all fertile florets and open (split) leaf sheaths.; vs Ehrharta: Melica has club-shaped sterile florets at top; Ehrharta has hardened sterile florets at bottom of spikelet.
Frequently asked questions
Is Melica fugax native to California?
Yes. Melica fugax is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Melica fugax bloom?
Melica fugax blooms May-Jul.
Where in California does Melica fugax grow?
Melica fugax occurs in Plumas, Siskiyou, Butte, Alpine, Fresno, El Dorado, Nevada, Glenn and other counties, at elevations of 1200-2200 m.
What plant family does Melica fugax belong to?
Melica fugax is in the Poaceae family, genus Melica.
What habitat does Melica fugax grow in?
Melica fugax grows in dry volcanic flats, hillsides, conifer forest.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.