< Back to the Object

Edit History
TRICHOLAENA teneriffae (L. f.) Link [family POACEAE]

Date Updated: 19 August 2007

Herbarium
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (K)
Collection
Flora of Tropical East Africa
Resource Type
Reference Sources
Entry From
Flora of Tropical East Africa, page 451, (1982) Author: W. D. CLAYTON and S.A. RENVOIZE
Names
TRICHOLAENA teneriffae (L. f.) Link [family POACEAE], Handb. Erkenn. Gewächse 1: 91 (1829); F.T.A. 9: 913 (1930); Ann. list grasses Ug.: 47 (1947); F.P.S. 3: 553 (1956); R.K.G.: 50 (1958). Type: Teneriffe, Masson (K, iso.!) Saccharum teneriffae L.f. [family POACEAE], Suppl. Pl.: 106 (1781) Panicum teneriffae (L.f.) Spreng. [family POACEAE], Syst. Veg. 1: 315 (1824) Panicum saccharoides Trin. [family POACEAE], Gram. Pan.: 245 (1826), nom. superfl. Based on Saccharum teneriffae L.f. Panicum leucanthum A. Rich. [family POACEAE], Tent. Fl. Abyss. 2: 372 (1851). Types: Ethiopia, Djeladjeranne, Schimper 1818 (K, isosyn.!) & Chiré, Quartin Dillon (P, syn.) Tricholaena teneriffae K. Schum. var. hirtifolia [family POACEAE], in P.O.A. C: 104 (1895). Type: Tanzania, Moshi District, Marangu, Meyer 383 (whereabouts uncertain, not B) Melinis teneriffae (L.f.) Hack. [family POACEAE], in Oest. Bot. Zeitschr. 51: 464 (1901) Melinis leucantha (A. Rich.) Chiov. [family POACEAE], in Ann. Ist. Bot. Roma 8: 308 (1907) Melinis eichingeri Mez [family POACEAE], in E.J. 57: 200 (1921). Type: Tanzania, Lushoto District, Mombo, Eichinger 3332 (K, iso.!) Melinis somalensis Mez [family POACEAE], in E.J. 57: 200 (1921). Types: Somalia, Meid Mts., Hildebrandt 1479 (B, syn.) and many other syntypes Tricholaena eichingeri (Mez) Stapf & Hubbard [family POACEAE], in F.T.A. 9: 912 (1930); R.K.G.: 50(1958); I.G.U.: 59 (1960); G.T.: 81 (1965) Tricholaena leucantha (A. Rich.) Stapf & Hubbard [family POACEAE], in F.T.A. 9: 915 (1930); F.P.S. 3: 553 (1956) Tricholaena gillettii C.E. Hubbard [family POACEAE], in K.B. 1941: 191 (1941). Type: Somalia, Duwi, Gillett 4395 (K, holo.!) Tricholaena setacea C.E. Hubbard [family POACEAE], in K.B. 1941: 191 (1941). Type: Somalia, Burmado, Gillett 4539 (K, holo.!)
Information
Perennial, forming tussocks from a woody rootstock; culms 10–60 cm. high, ascending, wiry with narrow leaves or herbaceous and leafy. Leaf-blades flat or involute, 2–15 cm. long, 1–5 mm. wide. Panicle usually narrowly oblong, 3–15 cm. long, fairly dense. Spikelets 2.5–3.5 mm. long; lower glume a tiny truncate scale (rarely up to 0.5 mm.); upper glume ovate, tuberculate-pilose with white hairs extending 0.5–4 mm. beyond the tip but often giabrous on the upper 1/4, acute and usually mucronate; lower lemma resembling the upper glume.
Range
DISTR. U1; K1–4, 6, 7; T1–3 extends northwards to the Mediterranean; thence westwards to Canary and Cape Verde Is., and eastwards to India
Altitude range
200–2800 m.
Distribution
KENYA Naivasha District Longonot, 17 Dec. 1950, Bogdan 2866!KENYA Machakos District Makueni, 8 Jan. 1954, Bogdan 3898!KENYA Teita District Worssera, 23 Dec. 1966, Greenway & Kanuri 12856!TANZANIA Masai District Oldiang’arangar, 19 Nov. 1962, Newbould 6266!TANZANIA Mbulu District Bagayo R., 19 Mar. 1964, Greenway & Kanuri 11385!TANZANIA Arusha District N. of Oldonyo Sambu, 28 Dec. 1961, Greenway 10410!UGANDA Karamoja District Moroto, July 1954, J. Wilson 26! & Muruaniwa hill, 30 Oct. 1939, A. S. Thomas 3126!
Notes
Three ill-defined regional facies may be discerned:1. T. eichingeri. Hairs short, extending 0.5–2 mm. beyond tip of spikelet; culms leafy. East and NE. Africa, Arabia.2. T. teneriffae. Hairs medium, extending 1–3 mm. beyond tip of spikelet; culms wiry. Atlantic Is., Mediterranean coasts, Iran, Arabia, Afghanistan, India.3. T. leucantha. Hairs long, extending 2.5–4 mm. beyond tip of spikelet; culms wiry. W. Mediterranean, Arabia, NE. Africa. T. eichingeri is distinct from T. leucantha, but they merge, both morphologically and geographically, with T. teneriffae. It seems impractical to maintain these entities as separate species.
TRICHOLAENA teneriffae (L. f.) Link [family POACEAE]
PDF

Related Materials