Poaceae
Sporobolus

Sporobolus pauciflorus A.Chev.

First published in Bull. Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat., sér. 2, 20: 470 (1948)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Guinea. It is an annual and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Morphology General Habit
Annual. Culms erect; 5-12 cm long. Culm-internodes distally glabrous. Lateral branches lacking. Ligule absent. Leaf-blades erect; filiform; convolute; 0.5-1 mm wide.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a panicle; comprising 10-20 fertile spikelets. Panicle open; linear; 1-2 cm long. Primary panicle branches indistinct the panicle almost racemose. Spikelets solitary. Fertile spikelets pedicelled.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; subterete; 2.3 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; subterete; 2.3 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes deciduous; similar; shorter than spikelet. Lower glume oblong; 1.1 mm long; 1 length of upper glume; membranous; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume apex truncate, or obtuse. Upper glume lanceolate; 1.1 mm long; 0.5 length of adjacent fertile lemma; membranous; without keels; 1 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume apex truncate, or obtuse.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Fertile lemma elliptic; 2.3 mm long; membranous; without keel; 1 -veined. Lemma apex acute. Palea 1 length of lemma; 2 -veined. Palea keels approximate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis with free soft pericarp; ellipsoid, or ovoid.
Distribution
Africa: west tropical.
Reference
Eragrostideae. Chev 1997.
[GB]

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

Morphology General Habit
A tiny annual up to 12 cm. high
Ecology
On ironpans.
[FWTA]

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/116125723/116125728

Conservation
CR - critically endangered
[IUCN]

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: threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

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

  • 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

    • '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/

  • IUCN Categories

    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/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