Chloris gayana Kunth, Poaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Reject, score: 6 (Go to the risk assessment)

Other Latin names:  Chloris abyssinica Hochst. ex A. Rich.

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: fei zhou hu wei cao

English: Abyssinian Rhodes grass, Rhodes grass, hunyanigrass

French: chloris, herbe de Rhodes

Spanish: grama Rhodes, grama de Rodas, pasto de Rodas, zacate conejo

Habit:  grass

Description:  "Glabrous perennials; culms erect or sometimes decumbent, usually with long, stout, flattened, leafy stolons, occasionally rooting at lower nodes, 50-150 (-200) cm tall.  Lower sheaths about as long as internodes, upper sheaths somewhat shorter, striate, compressed, keeled; ligule membranous, ca 0.5 mm long, ciliate; blades flat, rarely involute, 10-50 cm long, 3-5 (-9) mm wide, usually keeled, upper surface near base sparsely papillose-hispid, apex attenuate.  Inflorescences of (5-) 7-20 digitate, ascending to spreading spikes 4-15 cm long, ascending when young, spreading or sometimes slightly reflexed when mature, rachis slender, scabrous, base tomentose; spikelets 3-4-flowered, pale yellowish brown, closely imbricate; glumes narrow, 1-nerved, the nerves scabrous, first glume ovate-elliptic, 1.5-2 mm long, apex obtuse or acute, second glume elliptic, 2.5-3.5 mm long, margins scarious, apex acute or bifid; first lemma broadly elliptic, irregularly rhomboid in profile, 3-3.5 mm long, ciliate and long-hispid toward apex, apex bifid, awn straight, 1-5 mm long, callus with a tuft of white hairs; palea 3-3.5 mm long, ciliate and long-hispid toward apex, apex bifid, awn straight, 1-5 mm long, callus with a tuft of white hairs; palea 3-3.5 mm long, often exceeding lemma, submembranous, glabrous or sparsely scaberulous on upper part, apex bifid; rudiment of 2 sterile florets, lower one narrow, obtuse, 2-2.5 mm long, with a straight awn 1-2 mm long, upper one minute, truncate.  Caryopsis ovoid, laterally compressed, ca 1.5 mm long" (Wagner et al., 1999; pp. 1515, 1906).

Description from GrassBase.

Habitat/ecology:  In Hawai‘i, "naturalized and common in open, disturbed areas, especially in pastures and along roadsides, 15-1,040 m" (Wagner et al., 1999; pp. 1515).  In Guam, "occasional in cultivation" (Stone, 1970; p. 195).  In Fiji, an occasional escape (Smith, 1979; p. 310). In New Caledonia, "assez commun en pâturages et lieux incultes" (MacKee, 1994;p. 58).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  "Africa, now naturalized throughout the Neotropics" (Wagner et al., 1999; pp. 1515).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Lord Howe Island	Lord Howe Island	introduced	Pickard, J. (1984) (p. 205)
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Lord Howe Island	Lord Howe Island	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994) (p. 22) "Occurring in rough grassland and pasture". Vouchers cited: L.M. Bingley 25 (K), R.D. Hoogland 8719 (CANB, MEL), A.N. Rodd 1822 (K, NSW)
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Norfolk Islands	Norfolk Island	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994) (p. 12) "Occurring in rough grassland and pasture". Voucher cited: M. Lazarides 8066 (CANB)
Cook Islands Southern Cook Islands	Rarotonga Island		McCormack, Gerald (2013)
Cook Islands Southern Cook Islands	Rarotonga Island		Sykes, Bill (year unknown)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 310-311) Vouchers cited: DA 8308, 11311, 11852, 12582, 2803, 3619, 3620, 4017, 7397, 8465, 8466, 9053, 11782
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced cultivated	Stone, Benjamin C. (1970) (p. 195)
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 34)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1515)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Lāna‘i Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1515) Voucher cited: Forbes 181.L (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1515)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Moloka‘i Island	introduced invasive	Hughes, Guy D'Oyly (1995) (p. 8) Voucher cited: Hughes 367 (US) Naturalized in mixed lowland shrublands and lowland grasslands from 50-400 m.
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Ni‘ihau Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1515)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1515)
Japan (offshore islands) Ogasawara (Bonin) Islands	Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	introduced	Kato, Hidetoshi (2007)
New Caledonia New Caledonia	New Caledonia Islands	introduced invasive	Gargominy, Oliver/Bouchet, Philipe/Pascal, Michel/Jaffre, Tanguy/Tourneu, Jean-Christophe (1996) (p. 380) Assez commune en pâturages et lieux incultes.
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 58) Voucher cited: Guillaumin s.n.
New Zealand (offshore islands) Kermadec Islands	Raoul Island	introduced invasive	Sykes, W. R. (1977) (p. 165) Casual adventive.
New Zealand (offshore islands) Kermadec Islands	Raoul Island	introduced invasive	Edgar, E./Connor, H. (2000) (p. 508) "Coastal, behind dunes in grassy flats, also in pasture".
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced	Sykes, W. R. (1970) (p. 237) Vouchers cited: CHR 168785, CHR 168812, CHR 168783
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced	Whistler, W. A. (1988) (p. 48)
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	introduced cultivated	Henty, E. E. (1969) (p. 50)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	introduced cultivated	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands	Solomon Islands	introduced cultivated	Hancock, I. R./Henderson, C. P. (1988) (p. 57)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales	introduced invasive cultivated	National Herbarium of New South Wales (2013) Widely cultivated as a pasture species and planted on road margins as a soil stabilizer.
Australia Australia (continental)	Australia (continental)	introduced invasive	National Herbarium of New South Wales (2013) South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia
Australia Australia (continental)	Northern Territory	introduced invasive	National Herbarium of New South Wales (2013)
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	introduced invasive	Queensland Herbarium (2002) (p. 2)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced invasive cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013) Open grassland and savanna; widely cultivated in warmer parts of China.
China China	Hong Kong	introduced cultivated	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 329)
Japan Japan	Japan	introduced cultivated	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Japan Japan	Japan	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 192)
North Korea North Korea	North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of)	introduced cultivated	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
South Korea South Korea	South Korea (Republic of)	introduced cultivated	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)		Hafliger, Ernst/Scholz, Hildemar (1980) (p. plate)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)		Hafliger, Ernst/Scholz, Hildemar (1980) (p. 48)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive	Edgar, E./Connor, H. (2000) (p. 508) "Coastal, behind dunes in grassy flats, also in pasture".
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Chile (Republic of)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Perú (Republic of)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized
Taiwan Taiwan Island	Taiwan Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Ching-I Peng, ed. (2013)
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	introduced cultivated	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (California)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2013)

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	United States (other states)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2013)
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	USA (Florida)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2013)
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	USA (Florida)	introduced invasive	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Naturalized

Control:  If you know of control methods for Chloris gayana, please let us know.