Muhlenbergia lehmanniana Henrard, Meded. Rijks-Herb. 40: 49. 1921.

Peterson, Paul M., Herrera Arrieta, Yolanda, Lobo Cabezas, Silvia & Romaschenko, Konstantin, 2023, Taxonomic revision of Muhlenbergia (Poaceae, Chloridoideae, Cynodonteae, Muhlenbergiinae) in Central America: phylogeny and classification, PhytoKeys 230, pp. 1-106 : 1

11. Muhlenbergia lehmanniana Henrard, Meded. Rijks-Herb. 40: 49. 1921.

Fig. 10G-K

= Muhlenbergia attenuata Swallen, Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 30 (2): 138. 1943. Type: Panamá, Chiriquí, El Boquete, foothills, 1000-1300 m, A.S. Hitchcock 8174 (holotype: US-995843!).

= Muhlenbergia multinodis Aspl., Bot. Not. 1939: 796. 1939. Type: Colombia, Cauca, Popayán, El Tambo, 1700 m, 22 Jun 1938, Sneidern 1323 (holotype: S-R-3665 [image!]; US-2383833 fragm. ex S!).

Type.

Colombia, Cauca, Popayán, F.C. Lehmann 1267 (holotype: L-0044745 [image!]; isotypes: K-000308934 [image!], NY-00381489 [image!], US-72979 fragm. ex L!, US-72977 fragm. ex L!, US-72978 fragm. ex K!) .

Description.

Caespitose perennials covered in old sheaths. Culms (72-)90-130(-167) cm tall, erect, compressed-keeled near base, glabrous to scaberulous below the nodes; internodes glabrous. Leaf sheaths tightly imbricate below, golden yellow with age, not basally shredded; ligules 10-25 mm long, membranous, somewhat firm below; apex acuminate; sheath auricles lacking or rarely rudimentary up to 0.1 mm long; blades 20-40 cm long, 1-4 mm wide, flat to folded, scaberulous to scabrous, apex becoming narrow and threadlike. Panicles 19-45 cm long, 3-6 cm wide, dense and narrow, golden, golden-brown or purplish-green; primary branches mostly 3.5-14 cm long, and up to 19 cm long below, ascending and appressed, naked below; pedicels 0.7-3.5 mm long, scaberulous. Spikelets 2.5-3.8 mm long, erect; glumes 2.5-3.8 mm long, about equal, sometimes the upper glume, both longer than the lemmas, 1-veined, occasionally 2 or 3-veined, hispid; apex obtuse to dentate, usually mucronate, the mucro up to 0.3 mm long; lemmas 2-3.3 mm long, pilose along the veins and margin on lower 2/3, awned from just below the apex; apex obtuse, the awns 10-20 mm long, flexuous and minutely scabrid; callus with short hairs; paleas 2.3-3.2 mm long, usually shorter than the lemma, hairy between the veins on the lower ½; anthers 1.4-1.6 mm long. Caryopses 1.2-1.3 mm long, fusiform, glabrous, light brown. 2 n = 20 +2b ( Reeder 1994).

Distribution.

Muhlenbergia lehmanniana ranges from Central America in Costa Rica, Honduras, and Panama to South America in Columbia, Ecuador, and Venezuela ( Giraldo-Cañas and Peterson 2009).

Ecology.

This species occurs on gentle to steep slopes, ravines, gravelly sites, and disturbed sites in humid tropical forests with Pinus and Quercus ; 600-2200 m.

Comments.

Muhlenbergia lehmanniana is morphologically similar to M. maxima Lægaard & Sánchez Vega, a Peruvian endemic. However, M. lehmanniana differs from M. maxima in having longer lemmatal awns (12-20 mm long versus 4-9 mm long in M. maxima ) and longer ligules (10-25 mm long versus 3-5 mm long in M. maxima ) [ Peterson et al. 2018].

Muhlenbergia lehmanniana is a member of M. subg. Trichochloa ( Peterson et al. 2010b; 2021). There is not much genetic variation among all members of M. subg. Trichochloa in Peterson et al. (2018, 2021).

Specimens examined.

Costa Rica. Basamento de Fila Lleskila, L.D. Gómez et al. 23244 (MO). Alajuela: San Ramón, San Pedro de San Ramón, cerca del Río Barranca, A.M. Brenes 21415 (CR); 6 km S of Los Cartagos by road, R.W. Pohl & G. Davidse 11504 ( US); 12 km SW of San Ramon along the Carretera Interamericana, R.W. Pohl & G. Davidse 11511 ( US). Cartago: El Guarco, F. Solís 618 (CR); Oreamuno, in Monte Irazú, A.S. Oersted 14012 ( US), 14471 ( US); Paraíso, Las Concavas, C.H. Lankester 676 ( US); 5 km E of Paraíso, R.W. Pohl & G. Davidse 11390 ( US). Puntarenas: Coto Brus, Z.P. Las Tablas. Cuenca Terraba-Sierpa, el tajo, colectando a orillas del camino, E. Alfaro 2593 (MO); Coto Brus, Z.P. Las Tablas, Cuenca Térraba-Sierpe, Cerro Pando, colecta en bosque y orillas de potreros E. Alfaro et al. 925 (MO); Coto Brus, Z.P. Las Tablas. Cuenca Térraba-Sierpe, Cerro Pando, colecta en bosque y orillas de potreros, E. Alfaro et al. 931 (MO); Coto Brus, Z.P. Las Tablas, E. Alfaro 925 (INB); Coto Brus, Z.P. Las Tablas, E. Alfaro 931 (INB); Coto Brus, Finca Cafrosa, 2.5 km al E del Progreso, Cerro Pelón, E. Alfaro 2593 (INB); Buenos Aires, Ujarras, El Carmen, Sabanas de Murur Bisuk, estribaciones de Cerro Amu, G. Herrera 3593 (INB); Buenos Aires, P.N. La Amistad, Cuenca térraba-Sierpe, Violey, Sabanas Esperanzas, L. González & A. Garita 1196 (MO); Buenos Aires, R.I. Ujarrás-Salitre-Cabagra, Cuenca Térraba-Sierpa, Salitre, Cerro Sipar, L. González & A. Garita 1215 (MO); Monteverde, 10 km S Monteverde on road to InterAmerican Highway, area of spring, W. Haber & W. Zuchowski 9660 (MO); Golfito, P.N. Corcovado, Península de Osa, Dos Brazos de Río Tigre, Jiménez, Cuenca superior del Río Madrigal, margen derecha, G. Herrera & C. Fallas 4710 (MO, INB); Buenos Aires, Ujarrás, El Carmen, Sabanas de Murur Bisuk, estribaciones de Cerro Amú, G. Herrera & W. Gamboa 3593 (MO); Buenos Aires, Violey, Sabanas Esperanzas, L. González 1196 (INB); Buenos Aires, Salitre, Cerro Sipar, L. González 1215 (INB); Parrita, Cuenca del Naranjo y Paquita, Fila Chonta, La Virgen, sector SE, Fila entre la vuelta del Pallo, cabeceras Río Palo Seco y Fila Chonta, J. F. Morales & R.J. Abarca 6294 (MO); Buenos Aires, Potrero Grande, A. Rodríguez 9744 (INB); Buenos Aires, Potrero Grande, A. Rodríguez 9835 (INB); Boruca, Savanes de Boruca, Soc. ex. San José 449 (CR); Buenos Aires, Potrero Grande, D. Solano 2871 (INB); Buenos Aires, M. Valerio 873 (CR); Monteverde, 10 km S Monteverde on road to Inter American Highway, area of spring, W. Haber 9960 (INB); Coto Brus, Savanas de Cañas Gordas, H. Pittier 7355 ( US); Coto Brus, Savanes de Cañas Gordas, H. Pittier 11019 (MO); Coto Brus, Savanas de Cañas Gordas, H. Pittier 7358 ( US); Borde de chemin de Mano de Tigre, H. Pittier 4630 ( US); San José: Perez Zeledón, along Carretera Interamericana, S slope Cerro de la Muerte, between km 125 and km 117, M. Grayum & B. Hammel 9580 (MO, INB); Aserri, bosque primario y tacotales en la Fila El Alto, J.F. Morales 3390 (INB); Aserri, Faldas SE Fila Aguabuena, entre Quebrada Ceniza y Quebrada Sopapo, camino a Bijagual, J.F. Morales 6863 (INB, CR); Acosta, Alto Reflis, Falda NE, Fila de Cal, J.F. Morales 8764 (INB); Escazú, San Antonio, J. González 2886 (INB); Aserri, Cuenca del Pirris-Damas, Cerros Caraigres, Falda S, Quebrada Concha, en el camino viejo a Bijagual, J.F. Morales 5915 (MO); Aserri, Cuenca del Pirris-Damas. Ceiba Alta, Cuest Pacayas, Quebrada Pacayas, charrales residuales, J.F. Morales 6759 (MO, INB); 6 km by road N of San Pablo, N of San Marcos, open dry pasture on a hilltop, R.W. Pohl & M. Lucas 13142 (MO); Acosta, Cerro León, camino hacia Fila Aguabuena, R. Chacón et al. 190 (CR); Santa Ana, Z.P. Cerros de Escazú, Alto Caña Quemada, A. Estrada et al. 3241 (CR); Cercanías de División, Carretera Interamericana Sur, J. Gómez-L. 3460 (USJ); Acosta, Cuenca del Río Pírris-Damas, Fila del Naranjal, sendero a la Escuadra, J.F. Morales 7459 (CR, INB, MO); Acosta, Cerro León. Camino hacia Fila Aguabuena, A. Quesada et al. 741 (CR); Acosta, Cerro León. Camino hacia Fila Aguabuena, J. Sánchez et al. 1170 (CR); 3 km SSE of Villa Colon, R.W. Pohl & G. Davidse 11399 ( US); 13 km N of San Isidro de El General along the Carretera Interamericana, R.W. Pohl & G. Davidse 11631 ( US). Honduras. Comayagua: Ojo de Agua, orilla Río Humuya, 30 km N de ciudad Comayagua, bosque de vega tropical rodeado de pinares, C. Nelson et al. 6818 (MO). Panama. Chiriquí: In bare clay of steep artificial roadside bank below coffee finca. Western slope of first ridge east of Quebrada Zumbona, opposite east side of Cerro Pando, 7 km (by air) northwest of El Hato Del Volcán, T.S. Cochrane et al. 6327 (MO); Boquete, ca. 26 km N of David along the road to Boquete, Curatella-Byrsonima-Trachypogon savanna on old lava flow, G. Davidse & W.G. D’Arcy 10138 (MO); Boquete, eastern slope of Volcán de Chiriquí ( Barú), WNW of Boquete. Partially cleared slopes with patches of original oak forest and mostly secondary growth, G. Davidse & W.G. D’Arcy 10170 (MO); Large old lava flow ca. 3 km NE of El Hato del Volcán at base of Volcán de Chiriquí ( Barú), 1-3 km E of highway, G. Davidse & W.G. D’Arcy 10332 (MO); Llanos E of El Hato de Volcán, savannah and woods on lava flow, B. Hammel et al. 6811 (MO); Grassy slopes on lava flow about 16 km above town at Volcan, B. Hammel 1585 (MO); Volcán Barú, summit to llanos at base of W slope, along trail, B. Hammel et al. 6576 (MO); Lava fields near the town of Volcan, J.A. Duke 9143 (MO); Western slopes of Volcan de Chiriqui (Baru), on lava flow, S. Mori & J. Kallunki 5714 (MO); Bambito, in savanna 1 mile south, M. Partch 69-31 (MO); Alto Boquete, savanna, M. Partch 69-62 (MO); 2 km S of Boquete above the Río Caldera near a small flood control dam. Disturbed roadside, P.M. Peterson & C.R. Annable 7349 (MO, US); Between Río Quebrado El Velo and Río Caldera, W of San Ramon and NW of Boquete, gravel pit with very steep sandy slopes, P.M. Peterson & C.R. Annable 7372 (MO, US); 1 km NW of Boquete on road towards Volcan Baru, dry roadcut in bare soil, P.M. Peterson & C.R. Annable 7376 (MO, US); S end of Boquete, dry open slopes, P.M. Peterson & C.R. Annable 7385 (MO, US); NW of Boquete, between Finca Lerida and San Ramon, P.M. Peterson & C.R. Annable 7371 (MO, US); S end of Boquete, P.M. Peterson & C.R. Annable 7386 (MO, US); Ca 1.5 mi. northeast of El Hato del Volcan, grassy plain with occasional patches of forest, S. McDaniel 10199 (MO); Foothills, vicinity of El Boquete, A.S. Hitchcock 8241 ( US); foothills, vicinity of El Boquete, A.S. Hitchcock, 8242 ( US); Cerro Vaca, eastern Chiriqui, in savannas, H. Pittier 5360 ( US); Cerro Vaca, eastern Chiriqui, in savannas, H. Pittier 5362 ( US). Cocle: hills S of El Valle de Antón, P.H. Allen 2812 (MO);vicinity of Ola, H. Pittier 5062 ( US), H. Pittier 5042 ( US). Veraguas: Cerro Campana, savannas S of radio tower, B. Hammel 5528 (MO).

Figures

Figure 10. A-F Muhlenbergia versicolor Swallen A habit B ligule C glumes D lemma E palea F stamens, pistil, and lodicules G-K Muhlenbergia lehmanniana Henrard G habit, H ligule I glumes J floret K stamens, pistil, and lodicules. A drawn from G. B. Hinton 2324 (US- 1840807) B-F drawn from G. B. Hinton 14808 (US- 1842654) G-K drawn from H. Pittier 1468 (US).