Trikeraia hookeri (Stapf) Bor, Kew Bull. 9(4): 555-556 (1954).

Nobis, Marcin, Gudkova, Polina D. & Pendry, Colin A., 2019, Synopsis of the tribe Stipeae (Poaceae) in Nepal, PhytoKeys 128, pp. 97-119 : 114

Trikeraia hookeri (Stapf) Bor, Kew Bull. 9(4): 555-556 (1954).

Stipa hookeri Stapf, J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 30: 120 (1894) (Basionym).

≡ Achnatherum hookeri (Stapf) Keng, Claves Gen. Sp. Gram. Prim. Sinic. 106, 213 (1957).

= Timouria aurita Hitchc., J. Wash. Acad. Sci. 23: 134 (1933).

Type.

Tibet, 4500 m, sheltered nullahs near water, Jul-Sep. 1891, Thorold 124 (holotype K!, isotype C).

General distribution.

China (Tibet), India (Sikkim, Ladakh), Pakistan ( Freitag 1985; Wu and Phillips 2006).

Distribution in Nepal.

Although we did not find any specimens of Trikeraia hookeri during this study we include it here because it is known from nearby regions ( Freitag 1975, Wu and Phillips 2006), so it is very likely to be present in Nepal. Freitag (1985) reported this species from Nepal based on Sufed 104 (K), Mt. Everest, Tinkye palin, 4270 m, but this specimen appears to have been collected on the Tibetan side of Mt Everest.

Habitat.

Scrublands, alpine mats.

Altitude range.

4000-4300 m.

Note.

The 2005 DNEP3 expedition to Solukhumbu collected several specimens which were identified as Trikeraia oreophila Cope by H. Noltie [Dingboche, on trail south to the Lobuche Khola bridge, east facing valley side, 27°52'50"N, 86°49'7"E, 4230 m, 23 Sep. 2005, M.F. Watson et al. DNEP3 AX107 (E, KATH)]. These specimens are characterized by having 4-6 mm long lemma lobes, the awn arising below the middle of the lemma and ovary with two stigmas. Recently, Trikeraia oreophila was found to be conspecific with Sinochasea trigyna Keng ( WCSP 2019). Morphological and molecular studies have shown that the genus Sinochasea is distinct not only from Trikeraia , but also from all the other genera of the tribe Stipeae , and therefore it was transferred to the tribe Phaenospermateae Renvoize & Clayton ( Schneider et al. 2011; Romaschenko et al. 2012; Kellogg 2015).