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This genus is accepted, and its native range is Tropical & Subtropical to Central Asia.
Bulbostylis sp.

[FSOM]

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

Morphology General Habit
Annual or perennial herbs of small to medium size
Morphology Stem
Stems erect or somewhat curved, triangular, polyangular or almost terete, glabrous, scabrid or hairy
Morphology Leaves
Leaves near the base only; blades well-developed, flat or filiform or rarely reduced to sheaths, usually with long flexuose hairs at the opening of the sheaths
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a lax anthela, a head of congested spikelets or reduced to a single terminal spikelet; involucral bracts leafy or glume-like, often shorter than the inflorescence
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets with few–numerous spirally arranged glumes, all scales fertile or 1–2 lowermost without flowers
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes pale, reddish brown to almost black, often with green midrib, ovate to orbicular with obtuse or acute apex, sometimes the midrib extended into an awn, glabrous or more commonly scabrid or short-hairy
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Perianth
Perianth absent
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 1–3
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style
Style with 2 or (commonly) 3 stigmas
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Nutlet obovate to obcordate, obtusely or sharply triangular, rarely biconvex, pale, grey, reddish brown to almost black; surface smooth, transversely wrinkled, papillose, reticulate or longitudinally striate; the style base swollen and often persisting on the mature nutlet as a small knob.
Distribution
About 220 species in all tropical regions, but especially common in tropical Africa
Ecology
Growing in relatively drier habitats than most other members of Cyperaceae.

[FTEA]

Cyperaceae, K Hoenselaar, B. Verdcourt & H. Beentje. Hypolytrum, D Simpson. Fuirena, M Muasya. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 2010

Morphology General Habit
Annual or perennial herbs
Morphology Culms
Culms stems scapose, rarely many-noded
Morphology Leaves
Leaves usually with well developed blades, rarely reduced to sheaths.
Morphology Leaves Leaf sheaths
Sheaths usually with 2 lateral tufts of hairs
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts
Involucral bracts leaf-like or glume-like
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence usually lax but frequently a compact head of spikelets or sometimes reduced to a single spikelet.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes spirally arranged, pale to almost black, often with a green midrib, sometimes distinctly mucronate or awned, glabrous to pubescent or scabrid
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Perianth
Perianth absent
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 1–3.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style
Style with 1–3 stigmas Style base enlarged, usually persistent as a small knob or in a few species deciduous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Nutlets obovoid to obconic, usually ± trigonous, with various sculpturing.
Note
About 100 species thoughout the tropics; in the flora area 52 species have been recognised. Lye in Mitt. Bot. Staatss. München 10: 539–547 (1971) and Goetghebeur & Coudijzer in B.J.B.B. 55: 207–259 (1985) have discussed the concept of the genus. In Haines & Lye, Sedges & Rushes of E. Afr. (1983) a curious dual nomenclature quite contrary to the Code is employed when each species has one name in Abildgaardia and another in Bulbostylis, both treated as correct names; which is not permissible. The names using the genus Bulbostylis are accepted here but the Abildgaardia names treated in the synonymy. Later in Fl. Eth. Lye treated Abildgaardia and Bulbostylis separately, as did Gordon-Gray in Strelitzia 2 (1995); this is followed in the present account.

[FTEA]

Cyperaceae, K Hoenselaar, B. Verdcourt & H. Beentje. Hypolytrum, D Simpson. Fuirena, M Muasya. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 2010

Morphology General Habit
Annual or perennial
Morphology Culms
Culms scapose
Morphology Leaves
Leaves often distichous, ligulate or eligulate
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts
Involucral bracts inconspicuous, often erect
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a solitary spikelet or one sessile and 1-several stalked spikelets with main bract filiform to leafy, usually less than 1 cm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets dark brown to almost black, broadly ovoid with many spirally arranged ovate or oblong glumes which have an indistinct midrib and are persistent on the rachilla after the nutlets have fallen
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style
Style 2-branched
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Nutlets smooth without persistent style-base.

Native to:

Alabama, Aldabra, Angola, Argentina Northeast, Argentina Northwest, Arizona, Arkansas, Aruba, Assam, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Borneo, Botswana, Brazil North, Brazil Northeast, Brazil South, Brazil Southeast, Brazil West-Central, Burkina, Burundi, California, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Provinces, Cape Verde, Central African Repu, Chad, Chad, China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Connecticut, Costa Rica, Cuba, Delaware, District of Columbia, Dominican Republic, East Himalaya, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Florida, Free State, French Guiana, Gabon, Galápagos, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Gulf of Guinea Is., Guyana, Hainan, Haiti, Honduras, Illinois, India, Indiana, Inner Mongolia, Iowa, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Jawa, Kansas, Kazan-retto, Kentucky, Kenya, Korea, KwaZulu-Natal, Laos, Leeward Is., Lesotho, Lesser Sunda Is., Liberia, Louisiana, Madagascar, Maine, Malawi, Malaya, Mali, Maluku, Manchuria, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexican Pacific Is., Mexico Central, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, Mexico Southeast, Mexico Southwest, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nansei-shoto, Nebraska, Nepal, Netherlands Antilles, New Brunswick, New Caledonia, New Guinea, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New South Wales, New York, Nicaragua, Nicobar Is., Niger, Nigeria, Norfolk Is., North Carolina, Northern Provinces, Northern Territory, Nova Scotia, Ohio, Oklahoma, Ontario, Pakistan, Panamá, Paraguay, Pennsylvania, Peru, Philippines, Primorye, Puerto Rico, Queensland, Québec, Rhode I., Rwanda, Réunion, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Socotra, Somalia, South Australia, South Carolina, Spain, Sri Lanka, St.Helena, Sudan, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Suriname, Swaziland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Tennessee, Texas, Thailand, Tibet, Togo, Transcaucasus, Trinidad-Tobago, Turkey, Uganda, Uruguay, Venezuela, Venezuelan Antilles, Vermont, Vietnam, Virginia, West Himalaya, West Virginia, Western Australia, Windward Is., Wisconsin, Yemen, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe

Extinct in:

Italy

Introduced into:

Chagos Archipelago, France, Hawaii, Italy

Bulbostylis Kunth appears in other Kew resources:

Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status
Bidgood, S. [5118], Tanzania K000190346
Bidgood, S. [6146], Tanzania K000468279
Bidgood, S. [5249], Tanzania K000190477
Bidgood, S. [5515], Tanzania K000190745
Harris, T. [58], Mozambique K000545053
Bidgood, S. [5139], Tanzania K000190367
Bidgood, S. [5262], Tanzania K000190490
Bidgood, S. [5506], Tanzania K000190736
Rico, L. [1263], Bolivia K000295081

First published in Enum. Pl. 2: 205 (1837)

Accepted by

  • Govaerts, R. & Simpson, D.A. (2007). World Checklist of Cyperaceae. Sedges: 1-765. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  • Govaerts, R. (1996). World Checklist of Seed Plants 2(1, 2): 1-492. MIM, Deurne.

Literature

Flora of West Tropical Africa

  • C.B. Cl. in Hook. f., Fl. Brit. Ind. 6: 651 (1893)
  • F.T.A. 8: 427 (1902).

Flora of Somalia

  • Flora Somalia, Vol 4, (1995) Author: by K. A. Lye [updated by M. Thulin 2008]

Flora of Tropical East Africa

  • Hook. f., Fl. Br. India 6: 651 (1893)*, nom. conserv.
  • Taxon 17: 446 (1968)

Flora of Somalia
Flora of Somalia
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

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

Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

Kew Backbone Distributions
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2021. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2021. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Plants and People Africa
Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/
© Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/