Several other genera were previously included in Danthonia. The distinctive features of the whole group are that the base of the fruit has a callus of stiff hairs (often spreading, and becoming conspicuous at the time of fruiting), and that often body of the fruit has tufts of hairs. The other genera mostly have larger florets (lemma bodies > 3mm, and lobes >5mm). Notodanthonia lack the tuft or row of hairs immediately above the base of the fruit. Danthonia (in its strict sense) doesn't have awns, whereas the other genera do.  Austrodanthonia is a large genus of native species.