Thamnochortus rigidus

Male Thamnochortus rigidus plants bear many pendulous spikelets in each culm. The female plants bear their spikelets erectly.

This is a clump-forming species that becomes up to 80 cm tall and does not resprout after fire. There are often sterile branches from the nodes on the velvety stems.

The species distribution is in the Western Cape from the Cederberg to the Little Karoo and slightly into the west of the Eastern Cape, as far as Baviaanskloof. The photo was taken at Minwater near Oudtshoorn.

The habitat is fynbos on dry, rocky mountain slopes. The species is not considered threatened in habitat early in the twenty first century.

T. cinereus is similar but occurs in wetter terrain and resprouts after fire (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; Dorrat-Haaksma and Linder, 2012; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).