Dactylis is a genus of Eurasian and North African plants in the bluegrass subfamily within the grass family.

[1][2] Many species now considered better suited to other genera: Aeluropus, Ammochloa, Cutandia, Desmostachya, Dinebra, Elytrophorus, Eragrostis, Festuca, Koeleria, Odyssea, Poa, Rostraria, Schismus, Spartina, Tribolium, Trisetaria, and Wangenheimia.

[18] Dactylis, orchard grass, supports meadow ecosystems by feeding many insects and birds that dominate the areas; these species include: beetles, grasshoppers, larvae, caterpillars, sparrows, and horned larks.

The taxa show three levels of polyploidy, including tetraploid, diploid, and hexaploidy.

D. polygama), D. metlesicsii, and some forms of D. smithii, are diploid with 2n = 14; hexaploids with 42 chromosomes also occur rarely.

[21] This occurs in habitats of large populations of diploid and tetraploid Dactylis showing one way gene flow.