Prairie Junegrass

Koeleria macrantha

Pollinator Value

🐛 Larval Host: S14 Hesperia columbia recorded but western NA species, not verified in ON/QC
❄️ Winter Food Source: Wild Turkey (Phasianidae) consumes Koeleria seeds; seeds recorded in 14% of occurrence-based diet studies, comprising approximately 1.9% by weight/volume across 2 studies. Seeds ripen in summer and persist into fall, providing a minor but documented food source for ground-foraging gallinaceous birds.
S57 Wild Turkey diet records; S11 Fruit/Seed Period=Summer

Proximity Score: 4
Native Status: ❌ Outaouais ❌ Ottawa ❌ QC ✅ ON
Closest Direction: W
CEC Eco-Regions: 9 – Great Plains, 9.2 – Temperate Prairies, 9.2.3 – Western Corn Belt Plains
Rarity Notes: Globally secure (G5) and nationally secure in Canada (N5). Ranked S4 (Apparently Secure) in Ontario where it persists in scattered sand prairie and savanna remnants. Not listed under SARA or COSEWIC. Excluded from Quebec in VASCAN, with no subnational rank assigned by NatureServe for QC.
S22 G5, N5, S4 ON; S26 not SARA listed; S1 QC excluded
Rarity Ranks: QC SNA – Not Applicable, ON S4 – Apparently Secure
Migration: Stable
Ecological Context: Prairie junegrass is a cool-season (C3) bunchgrass characteristic of dry sand prairies, limestone glades, and open oak-pine savannas across the northern Great Plains and western Great Lakes. In Ontario, it occupies sandy or gravelly substrates on stabilized dunes, jack pine barrens, and oak savanna openings, typically in higher-quality remnant habitats. It is absent from Quebec and the Ottawa-Gatineau region, with its nearest Ontario populations in southwestern counties.
S10 dry sand prairies, conservative species; S7 dry prairies, sand dunes, jack pine and oak savannas; S4 dry sandy prairies, open woods, rocky slopes

Roles: Fire Retardant, Pollinator Attractor
S73/S29/S72 Evidence: Fire Retardant: S73 [MEDIUM]: S11 Fire Tolerance = High (not definitional)] | Pollinator Attractor: S73 [HIGH]: S64 Xerces listed (source-classified)]
Notes: As a cool-season bunchgrass that goes dormant in late summer, companion plants should be chosen to mask its late-summer dormancy. Warm-season grasses such as little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) provide complementary seasonal interest.
S4 companion plants should mask late-summer dormancy; S10 greens up earlier than Schizachyrium scoparium

Category: Dermatological Aid, Ceremonial Medicine, Stimulant
S28 Cheyenne: Dermatological Aid (cuts), Ceremonial Medicine (Sun Dance), Stimulant (prevent fatigue)
Notes: The Northern Cheyenne used this plant medicinally and ceremonially. It was applied as a dermatological aid for treating cuts (styptic action). In the Sun Dance ceremony, the plant was tied to a dancer's head to prevent fatigue (stimulant use) and was also used as a ceremonial medicine in the ritual itself.
S28 Hart 1981 Ethnobotany of Northern Cheyenne; S29 styptic, used for cuts

✅ Edible

Foraging Notes: Seeds were an important traditional food source for several Indigenous peoples of the American Southwest and Interior. The Isleta considered it a very important food before the introduction of wheat, grinding seeds into flour for bread and porridge. The Havasupai used seeds for bread and stored them for winter. Seeds are ground into a powder and eaten as porridge or used as flour for bread (PFAF edibility 1/5).
S28 Moerman 9 food uses across Havasupai, Isleta, Okanagan-Colville; S29 seed cooked, edibility rating 1/5