Poaceae
Otatea

Otatea acuminata (Munro) C.E.Calderón ex Soderstr.

First published in Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 44: 21 (1980)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Mexico. It is a bamboo and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome.

Descriptions

Morphology General Habit
Perennial. Rhizomes short; pachymorph. Culms erect; 200-1000 cm long; 10-25 mm diam.; woody. Culm-internodes terete. Lateral branches dendroid. Branch complement three; with subequal branches. Culm-sheaths yellow, or green, or purple; pilose; hairy above; with appressed hairs; setose on shoulders; shoulders with 3 mm long hairs. Culm-sheath blade linear; as wide as sheath at base; 6-15 cm long; 2-5 mm wide; glabrous on surface, or pubescent. Leaves 4-7 per branch. Leaf-sheaths glabrous on surface. Leaf-sheath oral hairs scanty; deciduous; 0.5-3 mm long. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 0.3-0.6 mm long; truncate. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath. Leaf-blades deciduous at the ligule; lanceolate; 6-15 cm long; 5-11 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface glabrous; hairless throughout, or except near base.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a panicle. Panicle open; 5-10 cm long. Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels smooth.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 3-7 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets linear; laterally compressed; 30-40 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Rhachilla internodes zig-zag; 4-6 mm long; eventually visible between lemmas.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 3-7 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets linear; laterally compressed; 30-40 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Rhachilla internodes zig-zag; 4-6 mm long; eventually visible between lemmas.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet; similar to fertile lemma in texture. Lower glume ovate; 3.5-6.5 mm long; herbaceous; without keels; 5 -veined. Lower glume apex setaceously attenuate. Upper glume ovate; 4-9 mm long; herbaceous; without keels; 2-7 -veined. Upper glume apex setaceously attenuate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Fertile lemma ovate; 11-15 mm long; herbaceous; without keel; 9-11 -veined. Lemma surface scabrous. Lemma apex awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 3-6 mm long overall. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Lodicules 3; membranous. Anthers 3; 5-6.5 mm long. Stigmas 3. Ovary glabrous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; 6-8.5 mm long.
Distribution
North America: Mexico. South America: Mesoamericana.
Reference
Bambuseae. Fl Meso-Am 1997.
[GB]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora

    • Clayton, W.D., Vorontsova, M.S., Harman, K.T. and Williamson, H. (2006 onwards). GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora.
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0