- Family:
- Cyperaceae Juss.
- Genus:
- Cyperus L.
Cyperus kyllingiella Larridon

[FTEA]
Cyperaceae, K Hoenselaar, B. Verdcourt & H. Beentje. Hypolytrum, D Simpson. Fuirena, M Muasya. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 2010
- Type
- Type: Ethiopia, Gon Ambra, Schimper 650 (P, holo.; BR, K!, iso.)
- Morphology General Habit
- Perennial, tufted, leafy
- Morphology Stem
- Stems 5–47 cm tall, 3-angled, 0.3–1.1 mm thick, glabrous; base swollen, conical or bulbous, covered in persistent coarse brown old leaf-base fibres
- Morphology Leaves
- Leaves 1–4 per stem, bright or dark green, ± half the stem length, flat or with margins inrolled, 3–22 cm long, 1–2 mm wide, margin and midrib with short spinelike hairs.
- Morphology Leaves Leaf sheaths
- Sheath grey or brown, 1.4–3.5 cm long, without ligule
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
- Inflorescence a dense terminal white head 3–10 mm in diameter, consisting of many tightly packed rounded pseudospikelets 2–4 mm long; pseudospikelets consisting of many 1flowered spikelets; pseudoglumes very closely packed, lanceolate, 1.2–1.7 × 0.4–0.6 mm, apex cucullate, obtuse and slightly bent, margin incurved Inflorescence bracts 2–4, spreading or recurved. Leaf-like, the longest 2–8 cm long
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Perianth
- Perianth segments absent
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
- Stamen 1(–2).
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Filaments
- Filament white.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Anthers
- Anthers pale yellow, 0.5–0.7 mm long
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style
- Style 2(–3)branched Style base persistent as small dark knob
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
- Nutlet pale yellowish grey turning to almost black, 0.5–1.1 × 0.3–0.4 mm, with minute tubercles in rows and a metallic shine.
- Figures
- Fig. 22, p130
- Ecology
- Within the woodland zone or bushland zone on moist sand or mud, or by swamps or on thin soil over rocks, also in grassy clearings within these zones; may be locally common; 400–1950 m
- Note
- Milne-Redhead & Taylor 8395 states the plant can be aromatic.
- Distribution
- Flora districts: U1 K1 K2 K3 K4T1 T4 T5 T6 T7 T8 Range: Tropical Africa from Senegal to Sudan and Ethiopia and south to Congo-Kinshasa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Botswana; India
[FWTA]
Cyperaceae, Miss S. S. Hooper. Flora of West Tropical Africa 3:2. 1972
- Morphology General Habit
- A slender, tufted or shortly rhizomatous plant with swollen stem-bases covered by brownish fibres
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
- The spherical white head is very similar to that of Cyperus pulchellus R. Br.
- Ecology
- Open woodland or savanna.
Native to:
Angola, Bangladesh, Botswana, Burkina, Caprivi Strip, Chad, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Gulf of Guinea Is., India, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Northern Provinces, Senegal, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, West Himalaya, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe
Cyperus kyllingiella Larridon appears in other Kew resources:
Date | Reference | Identified As | Barcode | Type Status | Has image? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mar 1, 2004 | Carvalho [3580] | Kyllinga microcephala | K000267178 | Yes | |
Schimper [650], Ethiopia | Kyllingiella microcephala | K000416623 | Yes | ||
Schweinfurth, G. [2053], Sudan | Kyllingiella microcephala | K000416624 | Yes | ||
Bidgood, S. [5944], Tanzania | Kyllingiella microcephala | K000468481 | No | ||
Bidgood, S. [5360], Tanzania | Kyllingiella microcephala | K000190590 | No | ||
Bidgood, S. [5138], Tanzania | Kyllingiella microcephala | K000190366 | No | ||
Bidgood, S. [6044], Tanzania | Kyllingiella microcephala | K000468381 | No | ||
Bidgood, S. [6209], Tanzania | Kyllingiella microcephala | K000468216 | No |
First published in Pl. Ecol. Evol. 144: 351 (2011)
Accepted by
- Darbyshire, I., Kordofani, M., Farag, I., Candiga, R. & Pickering, H. (eds.) (2015). The Plants of Sudan and South Sudan: 1-400. Kew publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- Larridon, I., Reynders, M., Huygh, W., Bauters, K., Vrijdaghs, A., Leroux, O., Muasya, A.M., Simpson, D.A. & Goetghebeur, P. (2011). Taxonomic changes in C3 Cyperus (Cyperaceae) supported by molecular phylogenetic data, morphology, embryology, ontogeny and anatomy Plant ecology and evolution 144: 327-356.
Literature
Kew Backbone Distributions
- Browning, J. & al. (2020). Flora Zambesiaca 14: 1-455. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- Cabezas, F., Aedo, C. & Velayos, M. (2004). Checklist of the Cyperaceae of Equatorial Guinea (Annobón, Bioko, Río Muni) Belgian Journal of Botany 137: 3-26.
- Figueiredo, E. & Smith, G.F. (2008). Plants of Angola Strelitzia 22: 1-279. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
- Hoenselaar, K., Verdcourt, B. & Beentje, H. (2010). Cyperaceae Flora of Tropical East Africa: 1-466.
- Mostaph, M.K. & Uddin, S.B. (2013). Dictionary of plant names of Bangladesh, Vasc. Pl.: 1-434. Janokalyan Prokashani, Chittagong, Bangladesh.
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Flora of Tropical East Africa
Flora of Tropical East Africa
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
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Flora of West Tropical Africa
Flora of West Tropical Africa
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
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Herbarium Catalogue Specimens
Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
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Kew Backbone Distributions
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
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Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
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Kew Science Photographs
Copyright applied to individual images
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Plants and People Africa
Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/
© Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/