Urochloa glumaris (Trin.) Veldkamp

Vorontsova, Maria S., 2022, Revision of some Malagasy forage grasses and their relatives within Brachiaria, Echinochloa, Moorochloa, and Urochloa, Candollea 77 (2), pp. 199-236 : 227

21. Urochloa glumaris (Trin.) Veldkamp in Blumea 41: 420. 1996.

Panicum glumare Trin., Gram. Panic. 143. 1826.

Holotypus: COUNTRY UNKNOWN: sine loco, s.d., Herb. Lindley in herb. Trinius 0727.01 ( LE; iso-: CGE) .

= Urochloa paspaloides J. Presl in C.B. Presl, Reliq. Haenk. 1: 318. 1830. Brachiaria paspaloides (J. Presl) C.E. Hubb. , Hooker’s Icon. Pl. 34: tab. 3363. 1938. Holotypus: PHILIPPINES: hab. in Luzonia ad Sorgo-zon, 1792, Haenke s.n. (PR; iso-: MO [MO-157629] image!, W [W0006080, W18890235852] image!).

Loosely tufted stoloniferous perennial, ascending to erect, 0.15– 0.5 m high, culms sometimes branched at base, glabrous or pilose above, nodes bearded when young. Leaf sheath glabrous or sparsely pubescent towards apex, with ciliate margins. Ligule a ciliate membrane. Leaf blade linear, chartaceous, 5–20 × 0.3–0.8 cm, with tubercle-based hairs on both sides. Inflorescence racemose, slender, 5–10 cm long. Racemes 2–4, 2.5– 6 cm long, roughly even in length, on a common axis 2–4 cm long, with no secondary branching, rhachis triquetrous, 0.5–0.8 mm wide becoming more narrow towards apex, finely pilose, spikelets overlapping untidily with adjacent spikelets, paired, sessile and shortly pedicelled in each pair. Spikelets elliptic, apically apiculate, 3.5–4.5 mm long, yellowish, often with a purple tinge. Lower glume ¾ to almost as long as spikelet, chartaceous, long-acuminate to mucronate, 5-veined, veins green, prominent, glabrous or scaberulous towards apex, turned away from rhachis. Upper glume as long as spikelet, somewhat concave, cartilaginous, long-acuminate, 7-veined, veins green, prominent, glabrous or scaberulous towards apex. Lower floret infertile, palea absent or minute. Lower lemma somewhat concave, cartilaginous, 5-veined, glabrous. Upper lemma rounded, rugulose, with a scabrous mucro 0.5 mm long.

Distribution and ecology. – Asian species long common in Mauritius, with only a single collection known from Madagascar: a historic Boivin collection from the Nosy Be island (and only a single collection known from La Reunion) (F ig. 15).

Notes. – Urochloa glumaris (Trin.) Veldkamp has acuminate to mucronate glumes, with the spikelet strongly dorsally compressed and a somewhat concave upper glume and lower lemma. VELDKAMP (1996), CLAYTON et al. (2022), and BOSSER & RENVOIZE (2018) record this species as annual but specimens suggest this is in fact a stoloniferous perennial sometimes branching at lower nodes.

F or discussion of the typification see VELDKAMP (1996).

Additional specimens examined. – MADAGASCAR. Reg. AIANA [Prov.

Antsiranana]: Nosy Be, s.d., Boivin 1978bis (P).