Poaceae
Eragrostis

Eragrostis macilenta (A.Rich.) Steud.

First published in Syn. Pl. Glumac. 1: 268 (1854)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Tropical Africa, Madagascar, SW. Arabian Peninsula, SE. India, S. Myanmar. It is an annual and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Morphology General Habit
Annual; caespitose. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 7-60 cm long. Leaf-sheaths eglandular. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades 2-20 cm long; 2-5 mm wide; flaccid; light green. Leaf-blade margins eglandular.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a panicle. Panicle open; elliptic, or ovate; effuse; 3-35 cm long. Primary panicle branches not whorled, or whorled at lower nodes (rarely). Panicle branches eglandular. Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels filiform; 2-12 mm long; eglandular.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 5-14 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 3-6 mm long; 1-2 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent; retaining paleas.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 5-14 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 3-6 mm long; 1-2 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent; retaining paleas.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes deciduous; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 1.1-1.5 mm long; 1 length of upper glume; herbaceous; 1-keeled; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex acuminate. Upper glume ovate; 1.1-1.5 mm long; 0.8-0.9 length of adjacent fertile lemma; herbaceous; 1-keeled; 1 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume apex acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Fertile florets divergent (at 45 degrees); free at tip. Fertile lemma orbicular; ovate in profile; 1.3-1.6 mm long; membranous; mid-green, or dark green, or black; keeled; 3 -veined. Lemma lateral veins obscure. Lemma surface smooth, or scaberulous. Lemma apex acute. Palea keels scaberulous. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Anthers 3; 0.3-0.5 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; oblong; 0.5 mm long.
Distribution
Africa: west tropical, west-central tropical, northeast tropical, east tropical, southern tropical, and western Indian ocean. Asia-temperate: Arabia. Asia-tropical: India.
Reference
Eragrostideae. FTEA.
[GB]

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

Morphology General Habit
Loosely tufted annual; culms 7–60 cm. high, erect or ascending.
Morphology Leaves
Leaf-blades flat, 2–20 cm. long, 2–5 mm. wide, thin, light green, without glands.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Panicle ovate-elliptic, 3–35 cm. long, diffuse, with slender pedicels (lateral pedicels 2–12 mm. long), eglandular; lower branches usually solitary or paired, sometimes ± whorled.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets 5–14-flowered, oblong, 3–6 mm. long, 1–2 mm. wide, the florets diverging at 45°, light green to almost black, breaking up from the base, the rhachilla persistent; glumes narrowly ovate, subequal, 1.1–1.5 mm. long, acuminate; lemmas subrotund (narrowly ovate in side view), 1.3–1.6 mm. long, smooth or scaberulous, acute; palea scaberulous on the keels, persistent; anthers 3, 0.3–0.5 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis broadly oblong, 0.5 mm. long.
Figures
Fig. 62/4, p. 196.
Habitat
Old farmland, roadsides and waste places, often in shade; 800–2900 m.
Distribution
K1 K3 K4 K5 K6 T2 T3 T4 T6 T7 T8 U1 U2 U3 Ivory Coast to Ethiopia and southwards to Zambiaa single record from India
[FTEA]

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

Morphology General Habit
Caespitose annual; culms up to 60 cm tall, erect or ascending, branched or unbranched, glabrous at the nodes, eglandular or rarely with glandular patches below the nodes, these sometimes coalescent into a ring; leaf sheaths glabrous or thinly pilose; ligule a line of hairs; leaf laminas 2–20 cm × 2–5 mm, linear, flat, glabrous, eglandular.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Panicle 3–35 cm long, ovate-elliptic, untidily diffuse, the spikelets evenly distributed on slender pedicels 2–12 mm long, the primary branches solitary, paired or the lowermost whorled, terminating in a fertile spikelet, glabrous in the axils, eglandular.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets 3–6 × 1–2 mm, oblong, laterally compressed, 5–14-flowered, the lemmas disarticulating from below upwards, the rhachilla persistent; glumes subequal, 1.1–1.5 mm long, reaching ± to the middle of the adjacent lemmas, keeled, lanceolate in profile, smooth or scaberulous, acuminate at the apex; lemmas 1.3–1.6 mm long, keeled, narrowly ovate in profile, membranous with obscure lateral nerves, diverging from the rhachilla at 45°, those in opposite rows not imbricate, the rhachilla visible between them, light green to almost black, smooth or scaberulous, acute at the apex; palea persistent, glabrous on the flanks, the keels slender, wingless, scaberulous; anthers 3, 0.3–0.5 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis c. 0.5 mm long, broadly oblong.
[FZ]

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]

Gramineae, W. D. Clayton. Flora of West Tropical Africa 3:2. 1972

Morphology General Habit
Slender annual 30–60 cm. high.
[FWTA]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

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

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • 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

  • Flora of West Tropical Africa

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

  • 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 2026. 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 2026. 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