Poaceae
Sporobolus

Sporobolus coromandelianus (Retz.) Kunth

First published in Révis. Gramin. 1: 68 (1829)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Eritrea to S. Africa, W. Indian Ocean, Arabian Peninsula to S. Central China, Jawa, New Guinea. It is an annual or perennial.

Descriptions

Morphology General Habit
Annual; caespitose. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 7-20 cm long. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades 2-10 cm long; 2-4 mm wide. Leaf-blade margins glabrous, or ciliate; hairy at base.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a panicle. Panicle open; ovate; 2-8 cm long. Primary panicle branches spreading; whorled at most nodes. Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; subterete; 0.9-1.7 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; subterete; 0.9-1.7 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes deciduous; dissimilar; reaching apex of florets. Lower glume ovate; 0.1-0.5 mm long; 0.1-0.3 length of upper glume; hyaline; without keels; 0 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex obtuse. Upper glume oblong; 0.9-1.7 mm long; 1 length of adjacent fertile lemma; membranous; grey; without keels; 1 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume surface smooth, or asperulous. Upper glume apex acute.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Fertile lemma oblong; 0.9-1.7 mm long; membranous; grey; without keel; 1 -veined. Lemma surface smooth, or scaberulous. Lemma apex acute. Palea 2 -veined. Palea keels approximate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Anthers 3, or 2 (rarely); 0.2-0.3 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis with free soft pericarp; obovoid; 0.7-0.8 mm long.
Distribution
Africa: northeast tropical, east tropical, southern tropical, south, and western Indian ocean. Asia-temperate: western Asia, Arabia, and China. Asia-tropical: India, Indo-China, Malesia, and Papuasia. Australasia: Australia.
Reference
Eragrostideae. TAC 2000.
[GB]

M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS

Morphology General Habit
Annual up to 20 cm high; leaves flat, 2–4 mm wide
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Panicle ovate, 2–8 cm long; primary branches in whorls, the lowest never barren
Distribution
S2; Old World tropics, mainly India and southern Africa.
Ecology
Altitude range 0–15 m.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets 1–1.4 mm long; lower glume oblong, 0.1–0.5 mm long; upper glume oblong-elliptic, as long as the spikelet; lemma similar to the upper glume but a little shorter; anthers 3, 0.2–0.3 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Grain obovate, 0.7–0.8 mm long.
[FSOM]

Gramineae, T. Cope. Flora Zambesiaca 10:2. 1999

Morphology General Habit
Caespitose annual; culms up to 25 cm tall, erect or ascending, branched or unbranched; leaf sheaths chartaceous, usually glabrous, sometimes with tubercle-based hairs near the margins above, lightly compressed; leaf laminas 2–10 cm × 2–4 mm, flat, glabrous or scattered tuberculate-pilose on the surface, scabrid on the margins or with a few long stiff tubercle-based hairs below, acute or subacute at the apex.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Panicle 2–8 cm long, ovate; branches in a succession of whorls, smooth, with numerous elongated viscid glandular patches, the spikelets 2–3 on secondary branchlets, these ± confined to the distal part of the primary branches.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets (1)1.2–1.4(1.6) mm long, greyish-green; inferior glume 1/4–1/3 the length of the spikelet, oblong, nerveless, glabrous, obtuse at the apex; superior glume as long as the spikelet, oblong-elliptic, 1-nerved, glabrous to scaberulous or minutely asperulous, acute at the apex; lemma as long as the spikelet or almost so, oblong-elliptic; anthers 3, (0.2)0.3–0.55 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Grain obovate, 0.7–0.8 mm long, terete or lightly laterally compressed.
[FZ]

Gramineae, W. D. Clayton, S. M. Phillips & S. A. Renvoize. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1974

Morphology General Habit
Tufted annual; culms 7–20 cm. high, erect or ascending.
Morphology Leaves
Leaf-blades broadly linear, 2–10 cm. long, 2–4 mm. wide, the margins scabrid or with a few long stiff hairs near the base.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Panicle ovate, 2–8 cm. long; primary branches in whorls, spreading horizontally soon after emergence from the uppermost leaf-sheath.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets 1–1.4 mm. long, glabrous or scaberulous, greyish green; lower glume a little oblong scale, 0.1–0.5 mm. long; upper glume oblong-elliptic, as long as the spikelet; lemma similar, but a little shorter; anthers 3, 0.2–0.3 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Grain obovate, 0.7–0.8 mm. long.
Habitat
Bare open places; 0–1000 m.
Distribution
Old World tropics, but mainly India and South Africa K2 K7
[FTEA]

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

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    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

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    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

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    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

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    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora

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    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • 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 2025. 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 2025. 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

  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images