Skip to main content

Elegant bamboo (Temochloa elegans) and liliana bamboo (Temochloa liliana) strengthen the genus

Elegant bamboo (Temochloa elegans) and liliana bamboo (Temochloa liliana) strengthen the genus

NEWS - Elegant bamboo (Temochloa elegans) and elegant bare bamboo (Temochloa elegans var. glabra) are new members and strengthen the genus that previously only had liliana bamboo (Temochloa liliana S. Dransf, 2000). The new taxa were found in limestone habitats in southwest Guangxi, China, and northeast Vietnam.

Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Guangzhou, Guiyang Vocational and Technical College in Guiyang and Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology in Hanoi described new species and varieties that strengthen the genus Temochloa into two species with two varieties.

Neomicrocalamus Keng f. and Temochloa S. Dransf. are two genera of climbing bamboos (Poaceae, Bambusoideae, Bambuseae) that are only distributed in limestone areas that are phylogenetically sister groups. The morphology has several similar characters, such as short-necked pachymorph rhizomes, climbing stems and ambiguous inflorescence structures.

Neomicrocalamus has semelauctant ‘inflorescences’, but at the same time, the basic unit of the inflorescence is a pseudospikelet because there are basal prophylls and bracts. This description is very confusing because the semelauctant and iterauctant conditions are very contrasting.

The researchers analyzed newly collected specimens from China and Vietnam to re-examine the ‘inflorescence’ structure of Neomicrocalamus and Temochloa. The new bamboo is more similar to Temochloa and grows at very low elevations (50-250 meters), while Neomicrocalamus is only found above 1000 meters.

Phylogenetic evidence suggests that the new bamboo originated from introgressive hybridization between Temochloa liliana S. Dransf. and Neomicrocalamus prainii. The newly discovered bamboo inherited 80.7% of its genome from the genetically more closely related T. liliana.

T. elegans has short-necked pachymorph rhizomes, creeping stems, solitary and nearly circular primary branchlets, branchial appendages with numerous short branches and nearly equal to the dominant central branch, occasionally repeating and approaching the size of the stem, pseudospikelets with 2-4 fertile florets, 6 stamens with notched anther tips, 3 stigmas and a caryopsis.

The species resembles T. liliana, but differs in solid (vs. hollow) stem segments, hairy (vs. glabrous) profiles on pseudospikelets, paleae longer (vs. as long) than lemmas, and palea tips that are pointed to slightly blunt (vs. 2-lobed). The species is found in southwestern Guangxi, China, and northeastern Vietnam at elevations of 210 meters.

T. elegans is found in only two localities and is not very common there so the number of mature clumps is limited. The Vietnamese population is well protected in Nature Reserves, while the Chinese population is scattered along highways and not in any protected areas. This species should be categorized as Near Threatened (NT).

T. elegans var. glabra can be distinguished from T. elegans var. elegans by its glabrous leaf sheaths and glabrous leaf ligules. The specific epithet refers to the glabrous sheaths and ligules. This taxon is found in limestone areas in northeastern Vietnam at elevations of 140-210 meters.

To date, T. elegans var. glabra is only known from one site in Vietnam and fewer than 10 clumps have been found. Inadequate field surveys have led researchers to propose a status in the category of Data Deficient (DD).

Original research

Cai Z-Y, Zhang Y-Y, Tong Y-H, Vu TC, Xia N-H (2024) Temochloa (Poaceae, Bambusoideae), a newly-recorded bamboo genus for China and Vietnam, with new taxa and a re-interpretation of flowering structures. PhytoKeys 246: 229-236, DOI:10.3897/phytokeys.246.129035
Labels:

Popular Posts

Awar awar (Ficus septica)

Awar-awar or lagnob or hauli tree or barabar or sirih popar or tobo tobo ( Ficus septica ) is species of plants in Moraceae, trees grow in bushes or in neglected places and sap contained in roots, twigs, leaves and fruit is used to treat poisoning and digestive problems. F. septica is usually 1-5 m high, although in the forest it can be up to 25 m. Round, hollow and bare branches. Roots, twigs, leaves and fruit will emit a yellow sap and sticky if injured. The base of the leaves is large and spiky, arranged alternately or face to face with a stem length of 2.5-5 cm. Large leaf blade, round egg, 9-30x9-16 cm, rounded base and blunt narrow tip, flat-edged, upper side dark green with 6-12 secondary bones pale white. Fruit paired, single or clustered up to 4 items, short-stemmed, at the base has 3 protective leaves, light green or gray green and 1.5 cm in diameter. F. septica is food for 22 animal species including wasps, bats, birds, monkeys and mice as well as seed dispersing vecto...
Read more

Sunda coucal (Centropus nigrorufus)

Bubut jawa or Sunda coucal ( Centropus nigrorufus ) is a species of animal in the Cuculidae, birds up to 46 cm long, black and reddish-brown, living in pairs, spending time in trees and often descending to the ground. C. nigrorufus has a black and glossy purple head, neck and back. The wings are rust-red or brown, the wing covers and the inner secondary feathers are black. The tail is long and black. Iris is red. The beak is slightly curved and black. The legs are black and shiny. The fingers have long, black nails. Bubut jawa eats caterpillars, grasshoppers, beetles, frogs, lizards, crabs that have habitats on the edge of the forest, secondary shrubs, riverbank shrubs, mangrove forests and spread up to an elevation of 1500 meters. Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Subphylum: Vertebrata Class: Aves Order: Cuculiformes Family: Cuculidae Genus: Centropus Species: Centropus nigrorufus
Read more

Screw tree (Helicteres isora)

Screw tree ( Helicteres isora ) is a species of plant in the Malvaceae family. It is a shrub or small tree, up to 8 meters tall. It has gray bark and alternate leaves, up to 22 cm long and 17 cm wide, oval in shape, with serrated edges and hairs. The flowers are red or white and reach a total length of 5.5 cm. The fruit is green when unripe, brown or gray when dry, twisted, spiral-shaped, and pointed at the tip. The seeds are black or brown, shiny, and diagonal, triangular, or rectangular. TAXON Kingdom: Plantae Phylum: Tracheophyta Subphylum: Angiospermae Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Malvales Family: Malvaceae Subfamily: Helicteroideae Tribe: Helictereae Genus: Helicteres Pluk. ex L. in Sp. Pl.: 963 (1753) Species: Helicteres isora L. in Sp. Pl.: 963 (1753) HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS Helicteres baruensis var. ovata DC. in Prodr. 1: 476 (1824) Helicteres chrysocalyx Miq. ex Mast. in J.D.Hooker, Fl. Brit. India 1: 365 (1874) Helicteres corylifolia Buch.-Ham. ex Dillwyn in Rev. Hortus Malab....
Read more