Purple Three-awn is a wiry bunchgrass of dry plains and desert grasslands, named for the three distinctive bristle-like awns on each seed. The purple-tinged seed heads shimmer in the wind across the arid Southwest. It is an important component of Chihuahuan and Sonoran Desert grasslands and provides cover and seeds for many birds.
Habitat
Dry desert grasslands, rocky plains, and open arid slopes
Diet
Seeds consumed by mourning dove, sparrows, and quail
How common
Common
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