Tufted, shortly rhizomatous perennial 60-150 cm high. Leaf-blades usually flat, 3.5-8(-12) mm wide, glabrous below, scaberulous or puberulous above; ligule 0.4-0.9 mm long. Panicle usually narrow with ascending branches, often 1-sided, 10-40 cm long. Glumes ± equal, 7.5-10 mm long, elliptic-lanceolate, acute, 3-nerved, pallid or green, lemma narrowly elliptic, 6-8 mm long (including callus), hairy all over, the hairs usually longer below the awn, entire at the tip; callus conical and blunt to acuminate and pungent 0.5-1 mm long. Awn bigeniculate, not articulated at the base, 13-20 mm long; column scabrid or shortly hairy (hairs 0.2 mm long); bristle scaberulous.

Fl. & Fr. Per.: July-September.

Type locality: Sibiria.

Distribution: Pakistan (N.W.F.P., Gilgit & Kashmir); from the Caucasus eastwards through Afghanistan, southern USSR and the Himalayas to China, Mongolia and Japan.

A widespread species between 1200 and 2500 m which has a reputation for being poisonous to stock. However, its toxicity is not so severe that cattle, sheep and goats cannot learn to avoid it before coming to too much harm.

The type specimen of S. subeffusa Ohwi (in Acta phytotax. geobot., Kyoto 17:15. 1957) has not been seen, but judging from its description it does not seem to differ in any substantial way from Stipa sibirica.