Cyperaceae
Bulbostylis

Bulbostylis pilosa (Willd.) Cherm.

First published in Bull. Soc. Bot. France 81: 266 (1934)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Tropical Africa. It is a perennial and grows primarily in the subtropical biome.

Descriptions

Cyperaceae, K Hoenselaar, B. Verdcourt & H. Beentje. Hypolytrum, D Simpson. Fuirena, M Muasya. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 2010

Type
Type: West Africa, Guinea, Isert s.n. ((B-W 1095, holo.; C, iso.)
Morphology General Habit
Densely tufted perennial 20–70 cm tall with a stout creeping rhizome.
Morphology Stem
Stems crowded, 0.5–2 mm thick, scabrid above, minutely hairy below inflorescence, glabrous to hairy towards the base
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 5–25 cm long, 1–3.5 mm wide, ribbed, minutely hairy.
Morphology Leaves Leaf sheaths
Sheaths brown or reddish brown, hairy and with long white hairs on margins of mouth
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a terminal head of 3–10 clustered compressed ovoid spikelets, 8–15 mm long, 3–8 mm wide.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes golden or reddish brown, with green midrib, ovate to triangular, 6–8 mm long, glabrous or with hairy margin and scabrid midrib; lowest glumes at least distichously arranged
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Nutlets greyish, obovoid, narrowed at base, 1.7–2 mm long, 1.2–1.5 mm wide, strongly transversely wrinkled.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style
Style-base reddish brown, persistent (included in length given above). Style branches 3
Ecology
Seasonally flooded wooded grassland, mangrove swamps, bushland, Brachystegia etc. woodland, coconut groves, burnt grassland; 1–1400 m
Distribution
Range: Senegal to S Nigeria, Congo-Kinshasa, Burundi, Angola, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe Flora districts: K7 T3 T4 T5 T6 T7 T8 Z
[FTEA]

J. Browning, K.D. Gordon-Gray†, M. Lock, H. Beentje, K. Vollesen, K. Bauters, C. Archer, I. Larridon, M. Xanthos, P. Vorster, J. Bruhl, K. Wilson and X. Zhang (2020). Flora Zambesiaca Volume: 14: Cyperaceae. M.Á. García, J.R. Timberlake (Eds). Kew Publish

Type
West Africa, Guinea, 1784, Isert s.n. (B-W 1095 holotype, C).
Morphology General Habit
Perennial to 75 cm tall, loosely tufted; rhizome variable, of slightly thickened shoot bases irregularly linked, less often uniseriate, or conspicuously elongate (c. 8 mm wide), clothed with markedly striate scale-leaves, soon decaying
Morphology Leaves
Leaves variable, outermost reduced to short sheaths, inner mostly bladed, occasionally obsolete; sheath mouth conspicuously long white hairy; leaf blades (when present) to 1/3 culm length, 0.8–3.5 mm wide, glabrous, short hairy or white pilose
Morphology Culms
Culms terete, ridged and furrowed, white-pilose to glabrescent, generally pubescent at least apically
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence terminal, a head to 18 × 23 mm with (1)10 spikelets, long hairy when immature; bracts 2, generally inconspicuous, occasionally exceeding inflorescence
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Spikelets
Spikelets laterally compressed throughout, 10–18 × 3–6 mm, greenish, buff to golden brown or chestnut red
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts Glume
Glumes 7–10 × 3.2–4.4 mm, distichous, persistent or some deciduous, apex shortly mucronate
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 3
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style
Style 3-angled, 3-branched, base c. 4 mm deep, persistent but occasionally shed before nutlet dissemination
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Nutlet 1.8–2 × 1.2–1.5 mm, trigonous, obovoid with tapering base, eventually greyish, surface faintly lineate becoming transversely rugose, outermost cells longitudinally oblong.
Distribution
Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique. Also in Senegal, Nigeria, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania, D.R. Congo and Angola.
Ecology
Open Brachystegia woodland, seasonally wet grassland, dambos, often on white sand; 5– 1400 m.
Conservation
Widespread; not threatened.
[FZ]

Cyperaceae, Miss S. S. Hooper. Flora of West Tropical Africa 3:2. 1972

Morphology General Habit
Tufted perennial
Vegetative Multiplication Rhizomes
A woody rhizome
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
A head of up to 10 large flattened spikelets
Ecology
Savanna woodland or grassland.
[FWTA]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of West Tropical Africa

    • Flora of West Tropical Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0