They are two of the common names of some 25 species of grass plants in the family Poaceae. They are also known as red grass, red straw, foxtail. The genus name of these plants is Alopecurus, from the Greek roots alopes (fox) and ourus (tail), which defines that : foxtail. It is also called foxtail and donkey straw, toad or man beards to another genus of plants of the same family Poaceae, which is the Andropogon, also called Schizachyrium. They are considered a weed and the hard consistency of their branches causes harm to the animals that eat it.