Plant
Beach Spinifex
Spinifex sericeusAlso known as Hairy Spinifex, Rolling Spinifex, Coastal Spinifex
Beach spinifex blankets maritime sand dunes with dense mats of silky, silver-green runners that bind coastal soils against pounding surf and gale-force winds. Male and female flowers appear on separate plants, with pollinated female flowers ripening into large spiky spheres that break free to roll down the beach like tumbleweeds. By trapping windblown sand along its deep root network, it plays a vital foundation role in building and repairing fragile foredune ecosystems across Australasia.
CoastalDune StabilizerPerennial
—observations
—countries
—peak records
Least ConcernConservation statusIUCN Red List categoriesLCNTVUENCREWEXLeast ConcernRed List categories, explained →
Diet & preyPhotosynthesis (autotroph)
Predators
- European rabbit
- Grasshoppers
- Swamp wallaby
ThreatsCoastal development, vehicle and foot traffic trampling, invasive weeds
HabitatsCoastal foredunes, sandy beaches, sandbars, coastal margins
Life spanPerennial (clones can persist for decades)
Classification
- FamilyPoaceae
- SpeciesSpinifex sericeus
Range data is not available yet.
Interaction riskLow
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Very high
- Why interaction risk is low
- Safe to observe at a normal distance.
Responsible observation
- Footwear caution: Stay on designated dune boardwalks to avoid crushing fragile runners and causing sand blowouts.
- Watching seed dispersal: Look for round female seedheads bowling across the beach on windy days during late summer.
Frequent Companion (c) Tomas Sobek, some rights reserved (CC BY) · cc-by
Image unavailableFrequent Companion 
Competitor Malene Thyssen (User Malene) / CC BY-SA 3.0 · cc-by-sa
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