Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.139134
Element CodePMPOA5V070
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassMonocotyledoneae
OrderCyperales
FamilyPoaceae
GenusSporobolus
Other Common Namessand dropseed (EN) Sporobole à fleurs cachées (FR)
Concept ReferenceKartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2025-07-11
Change Date1984-09-06
Edition Date2025-07-11
Edition AuthorsN. Ventrella (2025)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences> 300
Rank ReasonsSporobolus cryptandrus is a perennial grass occurring in floodplains, woodlands, forests, disturbed sites, sandy washes, slopes, ridges, desert scrub, and grasslands of the United States and Mexico, and as an introduced taxon in the southeastern United States and elsewhere. There are several thousand estimated occurrences of this species in its native range, which are potentially threatened by development, rights-of-way construction and maintenance, invasive species, succession, and other threats in some places. Little is known about threats and trends, but with a large range extent, abundant habitat, and broad habitat preferences, Sporobolus cryptandrus is considered secure.
Range Extent CommentsSporobolus cryptandrus occurs in North America, from Canada south to Mexico (FNA 2003). Its native range is from British Columbia east to Quebec, Canada, south throughout the western, central, and northeastern United States; it is considered introduced or potentially introduced in the southeastern United States east of the Appalachians (Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team 2025) and in South America, Europe, and Asia (POWO 2025). In North America and Mexico, the range extent was estimated to be 27 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data collected between 1994 and 2025 (GBIF 2025, iNaturalist 2025, NatureServe 2025, RARECAT 2025, SEINet 2025).
Occurrences CommentsBy applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data documented between 1994 and 2025, it is estimated that there are several thousand occurrences in North America and Mexico (GBIF 2025, iNaturalist 2025, NatureServe 2025, RARECAT 2025, SEINet 2025).
Threat Impact CommentsSporobolus cryptandrus is potentially threatened by development, rights-of-way construction and maintenance, invasive species, succession, and other threats in some places. However, they are considered negligible given the broad range and large number of occurrences of the species and its somewhat flexible and abundant habitat, as well as no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities.