Fimbristylis squarrosa var. esquarrosa
Content
Description
Annual with fibrous roots.
Leaves shorter than the stems, very narrow, flat or canaliculate, acute, more or less soft-hairy at least on the sheaths, ⅓-1 mm wide;
Inflorescence compound or decompound, loose, with several to many spikelets, 2-5 cm long.
Stamen 1;
Distribution
Asia-Tropical: Philippines (Philippines present); Sumatera (Sumatera present); Thailand (Thailand present), Australasia, Cagayan present, Japan present, Luzon present, Mt Patuha present, NE. and E. China present, New Zealand present, Polynesia present, S. Korea present, Toba Lake present, W. Java present
var. esquarrosa is known from Thailand, Indo-China, NE. and E. China, S. Korea, Japan, Polynesia, Australia, and New Zealand; very rare in Malesia: Sumatra (Toba Lake), W. Java (Mt Patuha), Philippines (Luzon: Cagayan).
Notes
KOYAMA (1957) thinks that the E. and S. China Seas draw a clear line of demarcation between the areas of the two varieties, but in E. Asia there is a considerable overlapping.
The collections mentioned by under F. squarrosa belong partly to F. aestivalis, partly to F. merrillii. The only Philippine collection of F. squarrosa var. esquarrosa I have seen is CURRAN FB 16783, distributed as F. aestivalis.
F. squarrosa is intimately related to F. aestivalis, with which F. VON MULLER, Fragm. 9 (1875) united it. KOYAMA, 1961, followed VON MULLER, possibly with good reason. For, although typical F. squarrosa is clearly distinct from F. aestivalis by the much longer, strongly recurved mucros of the glumes giving the spikelets a squarrose aspect, and by the long pendent hairs of the style-base (taken by NEES for fibres of the pericarp!), the mucros of var. esquarrosa do not differ from those of F. aestivalis. So the trichomes of the style-base (absent or very short in F. aestivalis), the slightly longer style and the often somewhat larger nut are the only characters to distinguish between F. squarrosa var. esquarrosa and F. aestivalis. Anyway, by assigning specific rank to var. esquarrosa (F. velata), its taxonomic value is over-estimated. According to TANAKA the chromo- some number in var. squarrosa is n = 10, in var. esquarrosa n = 12. See also KERN, 1955 and 1961.
The collections mentioned by under F. squarrosa belong partly to F. aestivalis, partly to F. merrillii. The only Philippine collection of F. squarrosa var. esquarrosa I have seen is CURRAN FB 16783, distributed as F. aestivalis.
F. squarrosa is intimately related to F. aestivalis, with which F. VON MULLER, Fragm. 9 (1875) united it. KOYAMA, 1961, followed VON MULLER, possibly with good reason. For, although typical F. squarrosa is clearly distinct from F. aestivalis by the much longer, strongly recurved mucros of the glumes giving the spikelets a squarrose aspect, and by the long pendent hairs of the style-base (taken by NEES for fibres of the pericarp!), the mucros of var. esquarrosa do not differ from those of F. aestivalis. So the trichomes of the style-base (absent or very short in F. aestivalis), the slightly longer style and the often somewhat larger nut are the only characters to distinguish between F. squarrosa var. esquarrosa and F. aestivalis. Anyway, by assigning specific rank to var. esquarrosa (F. velata), its taxonomic value is over-estimated. According to TANAKA the chromo- some number in var. squarrosa is n = 10, in var. esquarrosa n = 12. See also KERN, 1955 and 1961.