However, surgical removal can be problematic, since foxtails cannot easily be imaged by x-ray or ultrasound. ![]() Once a foxtail has passed beneath the skin, dogs and cats are often treated with systemic antibiotics, and the foxtail either allowed to encyst and degrade, or in the case of actual or imminent organ damage, removed surgically. In some habitats, this can be a matter of weeks, but in others it may require months, especially if different species flower and fruit at different times during the season.įoxtails that have progressed no further than surface lesions may be removed and the lesion treated with antiseptic and bandaged if necessary. In humans, foxtails can work through clothing, particularly fabric shoes and socks, causing discomfort to people while walking.įoxtails are a problem beginning when the grass inflorescences begin to disarticulate, and ending when the spikelets or spikelet clusters are mechanically abraded or incorporated into the soil, turf, or leaf litter. In all these cases, the foxtail can physically enter the body through muscular movements or, in the case of nostrils, air flow, can cause the foxtails to continue to burrow through soft tissues and organs, causing infection and physical disruption, which in some cases can result in death. Foxtails can also enter the nostrils and ear canals of many mammals. In dogs, cats, and other domestic animals the foxtails can become irreversibly lodged. In wild mammals that inhabit the native ranges of foxtail grasses, the fur is ordinarily short enough that the foxtails will eventually become dislodged, dispersing the seed.įoxtails can become a health hazard for pets and other domestic animals, and a nuisance for people. The spikelets or spikelet clusters of foxtails are adapted for animal dispersal: The foxtails disarticulate easily, the barbs cause the foxtail to cling to fur, and movement of the animal causes the foxtail to burrow into the fur, since the barbs permit it to move only in the direction of the callus. Retrorse barbs can be found on the callus, the lemmas, and the awns. ![]() In other grasses, such as needlegrass and brome grasses, the foxtail consists of a single spikelet, with the callus being the hardened lemma tip. Wild barleys have clusters of three spikelets, and the callus is the portion of the rachis to which they attach. The spikelets are sometimes called foxtails, even though the grasses are not.Īll foxtails have a hardened tip, sometimes called a "callus", and retrorse barbs, pointing away from the tip of the callus. ![]() Other grasses also produce hazardous spikelets. Alopecurus (foxtail grasses - the scientific name literally means "fox tail").Not all of these are hazardous most of the hazardous ones are in the genus Hordeum, and are also called "wild barley". The name "foxtail" is applied to a number of grasses that have bushy spikes of spikelets that resemble the tail of a fox. They can become a health hazard for dogs, cats, and other domestic animals, and a nuisance for people. Some grasses that produce a foxtail are themselves called "foxtail", also " spear grass". Thus, the foxtail is a type of diaspore or plant dispersal unit. Hordeum murinum, a common source of foxtails in many areasĪ foxtail is a spikelet or cluster of a grass, that serves to disperse its seeds as a unit. JSTOR ( July 2022) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message).Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ![]() Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources.
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