Poaceae
Hyparrhenia

Hyparrhenia anthistirioides (Hochst. ex A.Rich.) Andersson ex Stapf

First published in D.Oliver & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Trop. Afr. 9: 331 (1919)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is NE. Tropical Africa, Tanzania to S. Tropical Africa. It is an annual and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

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]

Morphology General Habit
Annual. Butt sheaths glabrous. Culms geniculately ascending; 30-150 cm long; without nodal roots, or with prop roots. Leaves cauline. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1 mm long. Leaf-blades 15-30 cm long; 5-10 mm wide; firm, or flaccid. Leaf-blade surface glabrous, or pilose; sparsely hairy.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Synflorescence compound; paniculate; 20-30 cm long. Inflorescence composed of racemes; terminal and axillary; subtended by a spatheole; enclosed. Spatheole lanceolate; 1.8-3.2 cm long; scarious; yellow, green, and brown (streaked); glabrous. Peduncle 0.5-1 cm long; pilose above. Racemes 2; paired; deflexed; 1.1-1.3 cm long; bearing few fertile spikelets; bearing 1-3 fertile spikelets on each. Rhachis fragile at the nodes; ciliate on margins. Rhachis hairs white. Rhachis internodes linear. Rhachis internode tip oblique; flat. Raceme-bases flattened; subequal; 1 mm long; stiffly setose; unappendaged, or shortly lobed. Spikelets appressed; in pairs. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Pedicels linear; flattened; ciliate; tip oblique.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Basal sterile spikelets well-developed; on lower raceme 2 in number; 0 in upper raceme; lanceolate; 8-11 mm long; larger than fertile. Basal sterile spikelet glumes ciliate on margins; lower glume muticous. Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; containing empty lemmas, or male; lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 5-6 mm long; as long as fertile; separately deciduous. Companion sterile spikelet callus indistinct, or square (0.1-0.3mm). Companion sterile spikelet glumes chartaceous; glabrous; ciliate on margins; acute; awned; one glume awned; with 3-6 mm long awn. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas 2; enclosed by glumes. Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 5-6 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus cuneate; 0.5-1 mm long; pubescent; base acute; attached obliquely.
Sterile
Basal sterile spikelets well-developed; on lower raceme 2 in number; 0 in upper raceme; lanceolate; 8-11 mm long; larger than fertile. Basal sterile spikelet glumes ciliate on margins; lower glume muticous. Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; containing empty lemmas, or male; lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 5-6 mm long; as long as fertile; separately deciduous. Companion sterile spikelet callus indistinct, or square (0.1-0.3mm). Companion sterile spikelet glumes chartaceous; glabrous; ciliate on margins; acute; awned; one glume awned; with 3-6 mm long awn. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas 2; enclosed by glumes.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 5-6 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus cuneate; 0.5-1 mm long; pubescent; base acute; attached obliquely.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes dissimilar; exceeding apex of florets; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume lanceolate; 1 length of spikelet; coriaceous; without keels; keel-less except near apex. Lower glume surface glabrous, or pubescent. Lower glume apex dentate; 2 -fid. Upper glume linear; coriaceous; without keels.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Basal sterile florets barren; without significant palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret lanceolate; 1 length of fertile lemma; hyaline; 2 -veined. Fertile lemma linear; membranous; without keel; 1 -veined. Lemma apex dentate; 2 -fid; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn from a sinus; geniculate; 32-45 mm long overall; with twisted column (dark brown to black). Column of lemma awn hirtellous; with 0.8-1 mm long hairs. Palea absent or minute.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Lodicules 2; cuneate; fleshy. Anthers 3. Stigmas 2.
Distribution
Africa: northeast tropical, east tropical, and southern tropical.
Reference
Andropogoneae. WDC.
[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 150 cm high, geniculate or ascending and often supported by stilt-roots
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
False panicle ample, 20–30 cm long; spatheoles lanceolate in profile, 1.8–3.2 cm long, streaked with green, yellow or orange-brown; peduncles 1/4–1/2 the length of the spatheole, bearded above Racemes 1.1–1.3 cm long, 3- to 4(–5)-awned per pair; raceme-bases subequal, flattened, the upper about 1 mm long, with or without a scarious lobe up to 0.2 mm long; homogamous spikelet-pairs 1 at the base of the lower raceme only, 8–11 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Pedicelled spikelet 5–6 mm long, glabrous except for the ciliolate margins, finely aristulate with an awnlet 3–6 mm long. Sessile spikelet 5–6 mm long, glabrous or sparsely pubescent; awn 32–45 mm long
Distribution
N1; Ethiopia, Sudan, Tanzania
Ecology
Altitude c. 1300 m.
[FSOM]

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

    • '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 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