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Cyperus pulchellus
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Photo: Nicholas Wightman
Mafinga Mountains, Mafinga District, Muchinga Province
Photo: Nicholas Wightman
Mafinga Mountains, Mafinga District, Muchinga Province
Photo: Nicholas Wightman
Mafinga Mountains, Mafinga District, Muchinga Province
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| Synonyms: |
Cyperus leucocephalus Retz. Cyperus zambesiensis C.B.Clarke Sorostachys pulchellus (R. Br.) Lye |
| Common names: | |
| Frequency: | |
| Status: | Native |
| Description: |
Slender perennial up to 45 cm high, with swollen stem-bases, forming small tufts; rhizome more or less absent; culms 11–36 cm long, 0.9–1.4 mm wide, trigonous, longitudinally grooved, smooth to slightly scabrid, the base covered with fibrous remains of old leaf sheaths. Leaves up to 18.5 cm long; leaf sheath pale green to pale reddish-brown, basal sheaths darker and split into fibres, 1–3.5 cm long; leaf blade linear, flat to v-shaped, 2–15 cm long, 1.8–2.9(4.2) mm wide, apex acute to acuminate, scabrid on margins and primary vein towards apex. Involucral bracts linear, spreading to reflexed, 2–3, lowermost 5–11 cm long, 1.8–2.9 mm wide. Inflorescence capitate; spikelets 15–60 in a very dense globose head, each with up to 20 flowers, lanceolate- ovate, 3.3–7.2 × 1.5–2.5 mm wide, rachis straight; glumes greyish-white, with cinnamon tinge, lanceolate, 1.4–1.8 × 0.5–1 mm wide, margin often curved inwards, keel indistinct, apex acute to rounded. Nutlet blackish to grey to (pale) brown, flattened-trigonous, (narrowly) obovoid to ellipsoid, 0.8–1 × 0.2–0.4 mm wide, papillose in longitudinal rows. |
| Notes: | |
| Derivation of specific name: | pulchellus: beautiful and little |
| Habitat: | |
| Altitude range: (metres) | |
| Flowering time: | |
| Worldwide distribution: | Widespread in West Africa, Chad, Ethiopia, Somalia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, South Africa, SE Asia and Australia. |
| Zimbabwe distribution: | N |
| Growth form(s): | Perennial. |
| Endemic status: | |
| Red data list status: | |
| Insects associated with this species: | |
| Spot characters: | Display spot characters for this species |
| Literature: |
Browning, J. et al. (2020). Cyperaceae Flora Zambesiaca 14 Pages 198 - 199. Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 88. |
Other sources of information about Cyperus pulchellus:
Our websites:
Flora of Malawi: Cyperus pulchellusFlora of Zambia: Cyperus pulchellus
External websites:
African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Cyperus pulchellusAfrican Plant Database: Cyperus pulchellus
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Cyperus pulchellus
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Cyperus pulchellus
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Cyperus pulchellus
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Cyperus pulchellus
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Cyperus pulchellus
JSTOR Plant Science: Cyperus pulchellus
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Cyperus pulchellus
Plants of the World Online: Cyperus pulchellus
Tropicos: Cyperus pulchellus
Wikipedia: Cyperus pulchellus
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