Taxon Report

Orcuttia pilosa Hoov.

hairy Orcutt grass

Print Report

Taxon Summary

Orcuttia pilosa, commonly known as hairy Orcutt grass, is a annual herb in the Poaceae that is found only in California. It occurs within Vernal pools, growing at elevations from 46 to 200 meters. Orcuttia pilosa is ranked 1B.1, Plants Rare, Threatened or Endangered in California and Elsewhere; Seriously threatened in California.

Classification


Scientific Name:	Orcuttia pilosa Hoov.
Common Name:	hairy Orcutt grass
Family:	Poaceae
Element Code:	PMPOA4G040
USDA Plants Symbol:	ORPI
Synonyms/Other Names:

Ecology and Life History


Lifeform:	annual herb
Blooming Period: May-Sep	May-Sep
Elevation:	46-200 (150-655)
General Habitats:	Vernal pools
Microhabitat:
Microhabitat Details:

Conservation Status


CA Rare Plant Rank:	1B.1
Global Rank:	G1
State Rank:	S1
State List:	CE
Fed List:	FE
Other Status:	SB_CalBG/RSABG
CRPR Changes:

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB


Total Occurrences:	35
Element Occurrence Ranks:
Excellent (A)	3
Good (B)	8
Fair (C)	4
Poor (D)	3
None (X)	15
Unknown (U)	2

Location


California Endemic: True
California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
Glenn (GLE), Madera (MAD), Merced (MER), Stanislaus (STA), Tehama (TEH)
Quads: Name (Quad Code)
Cooperstown (3712065), Daulton (3711918), Gregg (3611988), Herndon (3611978), Kismet (3712011), Lanes Bridge (3611987), Logandale (3912242), Madera (3612081), Merced (3712034), Montpelier (3712056), Paulsell (3712066), Richardson Springs NW (3912188), Turlock Lake (3712055), Vina (3912281), Yosemite Lake (3712044)

Threat List Data from the CNDDB


Threat List Total:	11
EOs with Threat Listed:	Total EOs	% of EOs
	30	86 %
Agriculture	17	48%
Grazing	17	48%
Non-native plant impacts	9	25%
Disking	7	20%
Altered flood/tidal/hydrologic regime	4	11%
Development	4	11%
Foot traffic/trampling	3	8%
Road/trail construction/maint.	2	5%
Erosion/runoff	1	2%
ORV activity	1	2%
Other	1	2%

Notes



Seriously threatened by agriculture, urbanization, overgrazing, non-native plants, and trampling. See Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 68:155 (1941) for original description, and American Journal of Botany 69:1082-1095 (1982) for taxonomic treatment.
Threats:

Taxonomy:

Selected References

Citation California Native Plant Society, Rare Plant Program. 2025. Rare Plant Inventory (online edition, v9.5.1). Website https://www.rareplants.cnps.org [accessed 4 November 2025].