Trichoneura mollis (Kunth) Ekman

First published in Ark. Bot. 11(9): 10 (1912)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Sahara to Kenya, Egypt to Arabian Peninsula. It is an annual and grows primarily in the desert or dry shrubland biome.

Descriptions

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

Morphology General Habit
Slender tufted annual; culms 12–50 cm. high, erect or geniculately ascending.
Morphology Leaves
Leaf-blades linear, flat, 3–11 cm. long, 3–5.5 mm. wide, scabrid, ± glabrous to softly pilose, sharply acuminate; ligule 1–2 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence 5–25 cm. long, narrowly elliptic-oblong, usually fairly compact with ascending racemes, less often the racemes widely spreading; racemes 10–40, 1.5–5 cm. long, stiff.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets 5–9-flowered, 6.2–8 mm. long, overlapping by about half their length, green or tinged with red; glumes scabrid, as long as or exceeding the florets, the tips caudate, the lower linear-lanceolate, 4.6–7 mm. long, the upper linear-oblong, 5.5–7.2 mm. long; lemmas oblong, 2.5–3.5 mm. long, thinly membranous, sparsely to densely appressed pilose on the back, ciliate along the lateral nerves except towards the tip; awn 0.6–2 mm. long; palea glabrous or capitate-pilose; anthers 0.3–0.5 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Caryopsis linear to lanceolate, 1.6–2.1 mm. long.
Habitat
Dry bushland; 100–230 m.
Distribution
K4 K7 semi-desert country from Senegal and Mauritania eastwards to the Red Sea coast, Somali Republic and Arabia
[FTEA]

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

Distribution
Senegal and Mauritania eastwards to the Red Sea coasts of Africa and Arabia
Morphology General Habit
Slender annual up to 50 cm high
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence 5–25 cm long, fairly compact with stiff ascending racemes 1.5–5 cm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets 5- to 9-flowered, 6.2–8 mm long, green or tinged with red; glumes as long as or exceeding the florets, caudate at the tip; lemmas oblong, 2.5–3.5 mm long, sparsely hairy on the back; awn 6–20 mm long; palea capitate-pilose.
[FSOM]

Morphology General Habit
Annual; caespitose. Culms geniculately ascending, or decumbent; 12-50 cm long. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 1-2 mm long; truncate. Leaf-blades 3-11 cm long; 3-5.5 mm wide. Leaf-blade surface scabrous; glabrous, or pilose. Leaf-blade apex acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence composed of racemes. Racemes 10-40; borne along a central axis; spreading, or ascending; unilateral; 1.5-5 cm long. Central inflorescence axis 4-20 cm long. Rhachis angular. Spikelet packing broadside to rhachis; 0.5 their length apart. Spikelets appressed; solitary. Fertile spikelets sessile.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets comprising 5-9 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets cuneate; laterally compressed; 6.2-8 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Rhachilla internodes pilose; hairy at tip. Floret callus pubescent.
Fertile
Spikelets comprising 5-9 fertile florets; with diminished florets at the apex. Spikelets cuneate; laterally compressed; 6.2-8 mm long; breaking up at maturity; disarticulating below each fertile floret. Rhachilla internodes pilose; hairy at tip. Floret callus pubescent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes persistent; similar; shorter than spikelet; gaping. Lower glume linear; 4.6-7 mm long; 0.8-1 length of upper glume; membranous; without keels; 1 -veined. Lower glume lateral veins absent. Lower glume surface scabrous. Lower glume apex attenuate; awned; 1 -awned. Lower glume awn 1-2 mm long. Upper glume linear; 5.5-7.2 mm long; 2-2.2 length of adjacent fertile lemma; membranous; without keels; 1 -veined. Upper glume lateral veins absent. Upper glume surface scabrous. Upper glume apex attenuate; awned; 1 -awned. Upper glume awn 1-2 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Florets
Fertile lemma oblong; 2.5-3.5 mm long; membranous; mid-green, or red; without keel, or keeled; lightly keeled; 3 -veined. Lemma surface pilose. Lemma margins ciliate; hairy below. Lemma apex dentate; 2 -fid; obtuse; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn from a sinus; 0.6-2 mm long overall. Palea 1 length of lemma; 2 -veined. Palea surface glabrous, or pubescent; hairy on back; with turgid hairs. 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; linear, or lanceolate; dorsally compressed; plano-convex, or concavo-convex; 1.6-2.1 mm long.
Distribution
Africa: north, west tropical, northeast tropical, and east tropical. Asia-temperate: Arabia.
Reference
Eragrostideae. FTEA.
Diagnostic
Inflorescence elliptic to oblong.
[GB]

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

Morphology General Habit
Annual about 30 cm. high
Ecology
Dry soils.
[FWTA]

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
  • 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

    • '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 2025. 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 2025. 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