That's a nice set of pictures. My first thought is Thamnocalamus tessellatus. Take a look at the link below and tell me if you think that's it.

Here is a link that might be useful: T. tessellatus

Could be one of the Arundinarias. It also looks like a PSEUDOSASA, perhaps Tonkin Cane or Jap Arrow.

Some pics of a few newly emerging shoots would help also.

Kt

kentuck-
I agree that Arundinaria gigantea is a possibility. Looking at the OP's photos again, I would rule out Pseudosasa based on the relatively small leaf size and the dense, bushy foliage. My other thought was a Pleioblastus, like hindsii or simonii. Do you have any reactions to these guesses?

My guesses were based on the bamboos that I grow. I do not grow P. hindsii or simonii, but those do look like possibilities.

The above pics look most similar to my Tonkin Cane aka Pseudosasa amabilis. It has only grown to about 18 feet tall and one inch in diameter here. Mine has dense foliage and similar leaf size. However, some of the culms in the above pics aren't quite as straight as my P. amabilis.

Kt

Thanks for the input...I am looking at pics of the species mentioned and I do see similarities. I will revisit and attempt to get pics of new shoots. Assuming I can get good pics, how sure can you be about your educated guesses? What do you look for in the shoots to distinguish between species and is there a good online source of photos to go on? Thanks for your help!

Shoots are quite varied, and they can be one more helpful piece of info. The best source for online photos is the one I linked to in my first response (www.bambooweb.info). That site is dedicated exclusively to bamboo and has a user forum category specifically for identification. If you post your pictures there, you may be able to get a conclusive ID.