Tripogon sugathakumariae Jabeena, Sunil & Maya, 2022

Jabeena, Manjakulam Khadhersha, Prabhukumar, Konickal Mambetta, Remya, Sivakumaran, Athira, Subramanian, Hareesh, Vadakkoot Sankaran, Maya, Chandrasekharan Nair & Sunil, Chandrasseril Narayanan, 2022, Tripogon sugathakumariae (Poaceae: Chloridoideae: Tripogoninae): a new species from southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India, Phytotaxa 536 (1), pp. 101-105 : 102-105

Tripogon sugathakumariae Jabeena, Sunil & Maya sp. nov. ( Figs.1 & 2 ).

Type: — INDIA: Kerala: Palakkad district, Nelliyampathy hills, Mattumala , 10°30’10”N, 76°42’17”E, 1170 m, 19 November 2020, Jabeena M.K. & Maya C. Nair 4380 (holotype: MH; isotypes: CALI, LWG, CAL) .

Diagnosis: —The new species is similar to T.bromoides in the presence of glabrous nodes, hairy leaf blades, glabrous peduncle, single awned upper glume, and 3-awned lemma, but differs in having distinct eciliate membraneous ligule fringed with long hairs at the ends of leaf sheath (vs. indistinct ligule with a tuft of 1–2 mm long hairs at apex), leaf blade 4.0– 17 cm long (vs. 15–50 cm long), spikelets 1.0– 1.5 mm broad, straw-coloured (vs. 2–2.8 mm broad, olive-green or yellowish with a purple tinge), unidentate awned upper glume (vs. bidentate upper glume with or without awn), lemma 3-lobed and 3-awned without a definite lobe between the median and lateral awns (vs. 4-lobed and 3-awned, with a distinct lobe between the median and lateral awns) and median awn equal or slightly longer than lemma (vs. shorter than lemma).

Description: —Caespitose perennials. Basal sheaths persistent with remnants of culm bases of previous years, not splitting into fibrous threads. Culms 10–20 cm tall, terete, erect; nodes glabrous, slightly geniculate. Leaf blades 4.0– 17× 0.1–0.3 cm, linear-lanceolate, flat, margins entire, acuminate at apex, sparsely villous on both sides, more hairy towards base; hairs bulbous based, 1.5–2.0 mm long; leaf sheaths 1.0– 4.5 cm long; ligules membraneous, eciliate, fringed with long hairs at the ends of leaf sheath. Inflorescence solitary, terminal, spiciform raceme, 6.0– 12 cm long, with 18–52 spikelets alternately arranged along both sides of raceme; peduncle stout, 2–5 cm long, glabrous; rachis 2.5–4.0 mm long, glabrous. Spikelets 4–7-flowered, secund, imbricate, 4–8×1.0– 1.5 mm, lanceolate, dorsi-ventrally flattened, straw-coloured; callus bearded, hairs 0.3–0.5 mm long; rachilla 0.8–1.0 mm long, smooth. Lower glume 1.8–2.5× 0.8–1mm, oblong-lanceolate, asymmetrical, broadened on one side, 1-veined, acuminate to mucronulate at apex, mucro ca. 0.2 mm long, scabridulose. Upper glume 4.3–5.5×0.8–1.0 mm (including awn), elliptic-lanceolate, symmetrical, 1-veined, 1-awned; awn ca. 1mm long, contiguous with the apex. Lemma 2.3–2.8× 1.1–1.3 mm, ovatelanceolate, sub-coriaceous, 3-veined, 3-lobed at apex, without lobes between the median and lateral awns, the mid-lobe acute at apex or rarely with a minute notch in the lowermost lemma, 3-awned; awns scabridulose; central awn 2.3–3.2 mm long, a little longer or about equaling with its lemma; lateral awns 1–1.5 mm long, about half the length of median awn. Palea 1.5–2.3×0.7–1.0 mm, elliptic-oblanceolate, notched at apex, hyaline, 2-veined, 2-keeled; keels scabrid along the margins from above the middle, minutely winged. Lodicules 2, 0.3–0.4 mm long, wedge shaped, glabrous. Stamens 3; anthers 0.8–1 mm long, oblong, yellow; filaments 0.75 mm long, slender, glabrous. Ovary 0.4–0.5 mm long, obovate, glabrous; styles 2, 0.5–0.7 mm long, slender, hyaline; stigma 1–1.5 mm long, feathery. Caryopsis not seen.

Phenology: —August-December.

Etymology: —The specific epithet is named after the renowned writer in Malayalam poetry, who stood with her strong words for mother Nature and conservation of natural resources, Padmasree Smt. Sugathakumari. She was at the forefront of environmental and feminist movements in Kerala and played a prominent role in the save Silent Valley movement.

Distribution and ecology: —So far, the new species is collected only from the type locality of Mattumala, in Nelliyampathy hills of Kerala at an elevation of 1100–1200 m a.s.l. Tripogon sugathakumariae was found growing in open montane grasslands along with T. bromoides Roemer & Schultes and Alysicarpus bupleurifolius ( Linnaeus 1753: 745) De Candolle (1825: 352) .

Additional specimens examined: — INDIA: Kerala: Palakkad district, Nelliyampathy hills, Mattumala , 10°30’10”N, 76°42’17”E, 1170 m, 19 November 2020, C.N. Sunil 4869 (SNMH) .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Tripogon sugathakumariae A. Habitat. B. & C. Habit. D. Portion of raceme. E. Single spikelet. F. A portion of spikelet showing callus hairs. G. Rachilla. H. Upper glume. I. Lower glume. J. Palea. K. Lemma. L. Stamen. M. Pistil. (Photos: Jabeena M. K. and Remya S.)

FIGURE 2. Tripogon sugathakumariae A. Habit. B. Portion of raceme. C. Spikelet. D. A portion of spikelet showing callus hairs. E. Rachilla. F. Upper glume. G. Lower glume. H. Lemma. I. Palea. J. Stamen. K. Stamens and Pistil L. Pistil.(Illustrated by Jabeena M. K. from Jabeena M. K. & Maya C. Nair 4380)