Poaceae
Eragrostis

Eragrostis minor Host

First published in Fl. Austriaca 1: 135 (1827)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Old World. It is an annual or perennial and grows primarily in the subtropical biome.

Descriptions

Morphology General Habit
Annual; caespitose. Glands wart-like (on keel). Culms geniculately ascending; 6-60 cm long. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades 3-12 cm long; 1-5 mm wide. Leaf-blade margins glandular, or eglandular.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a panicle. Panicle open; ovate; dense, or loose; 4-20 cm long. Panicle branches stiff; eglandular, or glandular. Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled. Pedicels oblong; 1-3 mm long; eglandular, or glandular.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 6-16(-40) fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 3-15 mm long; 1.3-2 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent; retaining paleas. Rhachilla internodes definite.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 6-16(-40) fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets oblong; laterally compressed; 3-15 mm long; 1.3-2 mm wide; breaking up at maturity; rhachilla persistent; retaining paleas. Rhachilla internodes definite.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes deciduous; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume ovate; 1-1.7 mm long; 1 length of upper glume; eglandular, or glandular (on keel); 1-keeled; 1-3 -veined. Lower glume apex acute. Upper glume ovate; 1-1.7 mm long; 0.7-0.8 length of adjacent fertile lemma; eglandular, or glandular; 1-keeled; 1-3 -veined. Upper glume apex acute.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Fertile lemma ovate, or orbicular; 1.5-2 mm long; chartaceous; yellow, or grey, or purple; glandular on veins (keel); keeled; 3 -veined. Lemma lateral veins distinct. Lemma apex obtuse. Palea keels scabrous. Apical sterile florets resembling fertile though underdeveloped.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Anthers 3; 0.3 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; oblong; 0.7-0.8 mm long; dark brown.
Distribution
Europe: central, southwestern, southeastern, and eastern. Africa: north, Macaronesia, west tropical, northeast tropical, east tropical, south, middle Atlantic ocean, and western Indian ocean. Asia-temperate: Siberia, Soviet far east, Soviet Middle Asia, Caucasus, western Asia, Arabia, China, Mongolia, and eastern Asia. Asia-tropical: India, Indo-China, Malesia, and Papuasia. Australasia: Australia. Pacific: southwestern and northwestern. North America: eastern Canada, north-central USA, northeast USA, southwest USA, south-central USA, and southeast USA. South America: northern South America, Brazil, and southern South America.
Reference
Eragrostideae. FTEA.
[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 60 cm high; leaves flat or inrolled, with crateriform glands along the margins
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Panicle elliptic to ovate, 3–20 cm long, rather open but with short pedicels, the branchlets and pedicels bearing crateriform glands
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets linear to narrowly oblong, 4.8–9 mm long, 8- to 16-flowered, shedding their lemmas from below upwards, the paleas persistent on the tough rhachilla; glumes subequal, lanceolate, 1.3–1.8 mm long, acute, sometimes with crateriform glands along the nerve; lemmas ovate in profile, papery, 1.4–1.8 mm long, scaberulous, obtuse; palea-keels scabrid; anthers 3, c. 0.3 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Grain usually broadly oblong, (0.5–)0.6–0.8 mm long.
Distribution
N1 subtropical and warm temperate Old World.
Ecology
Altitude c. 50 m.
Vernacular
Tigat had (Somali)
Note
Differs from E. cilianensis mainly by the narrower spikelets, shorter lemmas and oblong grain, and from E. barrelieri mainly by the presence of crateriform glands along the leaf-margins.
[FSOM]

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

  • Flora of Somalia

    • Flora of Somalia
    • 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 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