Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER)

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Cyrtococcum oxyphyllum
(Hochst. ex Steud.) Stapf, Poaceae
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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Panicum oxyphyllum Hochst. ex Steud.

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: jian ye gong guo shu

English: long-leaf cyrtococcum grass, shining panicgrass

Fijian: osalasala, thovatu

Habit:  grass

Description:  "Perennial, the culms ascending from a slender creeping base, 15-45 cm high; leaf blades 2.5-10 cm or more long, 3-12 mm broad; panicle dense, narrow, 2.5-10 cm long, the branches ascending to erect, 1.5-38. cm long; spikelets alike, asymmetrical, compressed, glabrous, awnless, falling entire, 1.5-2 mm long, light brown in color." (Smith, 1979)"Creeping perennial, culms prostrate and rooting at the nodes, erect portions to 60 cm tall, internodes cylindrical or slightly flattened, hollow with irregular strips of pith remnants appressed to the culm wall, glabrous, the nodes glabrous or appressed-pubescent.  Leaves with sheaths slightly keeled toward the tip, glabrous to pubescent and ciliate, often with a few auricular cilia, collar glabrous; ligule 0.7-1.1 mm long, minutely ciliolate; longest blades 6-20 cm long, 4-15 mm wide, linear-lanceolate, acuminate, the base narrowed, slightly asymmetrical, glabrous to sparsely pubescent, usually puberulent behind the ligule, margin minutely scabrous, sometimes ciliate in the lower half.  Panicle 5-20 cm long, the branches usually appressed to ascending, usually sparsely pilose, sometimes merely scabrid, the lower branches naked up to 1/2 their lengths, the tips of the pedicels often with a few spicules, the pulvini pilose, rarely glabrous.  Spikelets 1.7-2.2 mm long, glabrous, rarely pubescent, green or purplish to reddish-brown at maturity; lower glume 1.1-1.6 mm long, 3-nerved; upper glume 1.6-1.7 mm long, 3-nerved; lower floret with lemma 5-nerved, palea absent or rudimentary; upper floret 1.4-1.8 mm long, 0.8-1.1 mm wide, smooth; anthers 0.8-0.9 mm long.  Caryopsis 1-1.2 mm long, 0.6-0.7 mm wide" (Dassanayake, 1994; pp. 140-142).

Description from GrassBase.

Habitat/ecology:  In Fiji, "a minor weed of coconut plantations" (Smith, 1979; pp. 351, 353).  In Samoa, "occasional in sunny, disturbed places" (Whistler, 1988; p. 49).  In Ceylon, "in forest shade at elevations of 100-1400 m" (Dassanayake, 1994; pp. 140-142).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Indo-Malesia. An early introduction into the Pacific (Whistler, 1988; p. 49). Fosberg et al. (1987; p. 35) list as native in Micronesia.

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. &
Island group
Location Cited status &
Cited as invasive &
Cited as cultivated &
Cited as aboriginal introduction?
Reference &
Comments
American Samoa
Manu‘a Islands
Ofu Island   Whistler, W. A. (1990)
Vouchers cited: Garber 975, Whistler 3815
American Samoa
Manu‘a Islands
Ta‘u Island   Whistler, W. A. (1990)
Vouchers cited: Harris 166, Whistler 1393
American Samoa
Manu‘a Islands
Ta‘u Island   National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.) (1990) (voucher ID: PTBG 10391)
Taxon name on voucher: Cyrtococcum oxyphyllum
Cook Islands
Southern Cook Islands
Rarotonga Island   McCormack, Gerald (2013)
?
Federated States of Micronesia
Chuuk Islands
Weno (Moen) Island native
Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 35)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Kandavu Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Voucher cited: DA 9067
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Koro Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Mango Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Matuku Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Mbatiki Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Moala Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Moturiki Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Naitamba Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Ngau Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Vouchers cited: Macgillivray s. n., Smith 7922
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Ovalau Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Voucher cited: Seemann 693
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Totoya Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Vanua Levu Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Vouchers cited: Seemann 693, Greenwood 165A, DA 8795, Degener & Ordonez 14037, DA 16880
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Vanua Mbalavu Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Viti Levu Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Vouchers cited: Smith 4283, Degener 15231, DA 13981, DA 8416, DA 1611, Smith 7147, DA 16528, Meebold 17098
Fiji
Fiji Islands
Yasawas Island introduced
invasive
abo. intro.
Smith, Albert C. (1979) (pp. 351, 353)
Voucher cited: St. John 18127
French Polynesia
Society Islands
Bora Bora Island introduced
invasive
Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 333)
Voucher cited: Grant 4918
French Polynesia
Society Islands
Huahine Island introduced
invasive
Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013)
Voucher cited: J. Florence & R. Tahuaitu 11679 (PAP)
Adventice
French Polynesia
Society Islands
Moorea Island introduced
invasive
Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 333)
Voucher cited: Florence 4947
French Polynesia
Society Islands
Moorea Island introduced
invasive
Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013)
Voucher cited: J. Florence 4947 (PAP)
Adventice
French Polynesia
Society Islands
Raiatea (Havai) Island introduced
invasive
Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 333)
Vouchers cited: Moore 143, Florence 3799
French Polynesia
Society Islands
Raiatea (Havai) Island introduced
invasive
Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013)
Vouchers cited: J. Florence 3705 (PAP), J. Florence 3799 (PAP), P. Morat 7008 (PAP)
Adventice
French Polynesia
Society Islands
Taha‘a Island introduced
invasive
Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013)
Voucher cited: J. Florence 5308 (PAP)
Adventice
French Polynesia
Society Islands
Tahiti Island introduced
invasive
Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013)
Voucher cited: J. Florence 5308 (PAP)
Adventice
Guam
Guam Island
Guam Island native
Raulerson, L. (2006) (p. 7)
Niue
Niue
Niue Island introduced
abo. intro.
Sykes, W. R. (1970) (pp. 238-239)
Voucher cited: CHR 168745
Niue
Niue
Niue Island introduced
abo. intro.
Whistler, W. A. (1988) (p. 49)
Uncommon
Palau
Palau (Belau ) (main island group)
Babeldaob Island native
Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 35)
Palau
Palau (Belau ) (main island group)
Koror (Oreor) Island native
Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 35)
Papua New Guinea
Bismarck Archipelago
New Britain Island   Burcham, L. T. (1948) (p. 418)
Voucher cited: Burcham 139 (US)
Papua New Guinea
Bougainville Islands
Bougainville Island   Foreman, D. B. (1971) (p. 25)
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)
Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island) native
U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Philippines
Philippine Islands
Philippine Islands   Waterhouse, D. F. (1993) (p. 65)
Samoa
Western Samoa Islands
Western Samoa Islands   Whistler, W. A. (1988) (p. 49)
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands   Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 91)
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands native
Hancock, I. R./Henderson, C. P. (1988) (p. 63)
Tonga
Ha‘apai Group
Tofua Island introduced
abo. intro.
Whistler, W. A. (1992) (p. 98)
Vouchers cited: Hotta 4336, Scarth-Johnson 107
Tonga
Tonga Islands
Tonga Islands   Yuncker, T. G. (1959) (p. 60)
"Occasional throughout Tonga"
Tonga
Tongatapu Group
‘Eua Island introduced
abo. intro.
Whistler, W. A. (1992) (p. 98)
Vouchers cited: Soakai 339, Syskes 266, Palmer 146, Whistler 5984, Whistler 6459, Whistler 7186, Whistler 7231, Martin 19
Tonga
Tongatapu Group
Tongatapu Island introduced
abo. intro.
Whistler, W. A. (1992) (p. 98)
Vouchers cited: Moseley (n.s.), Yuncker 15234, Whistler 6457
Tonga
Tongatapu Group
Tongatapu Island   Yuncker, T. G. (1959) (p. 60)
Voucher cited: Yuncker 15234
Tonga
Vava‘u Group
Late Island introduced
Sykes, W. R. (1981) (p. 352)
Tonga
Vava‘u Group
Late Island introduced
abo. intro.
Whistler, W. A. (1992) (p. 98)
Vouchers cited: Hotta 4824! (cf. 4826), Buelow & Sykes 101
Tonga
Vava‘u Group
Niuafo‘ou Island introduced
abo. intro.
Whistler, W. A. (1992) (p. 98)
Voucher cited: Whistler 6413
Tonga
Vava‘u Group
Tafahi Island introduced
abo. intro.
Whistler, W. A. (1992) (p. 98)
Vouchers cited: Hurlimann 436, Whistler 6268
Tonga
Vava‘u Group
Vava‘u Island introduced
abo. intro.
Whistler, W. A. (1992) (p. 98)
Vouchers cited: Barclay s.n., Crosby 197, Yuncker 16047, Yuncker 16152, Soakai 1057
Tonga
Vava‘u Group
Vava‘u Island   Yuncker, T. G. (1959) (p. 60)
Vouchers cited: Yuncker 16047, Yuncker 16152
Vanuatu
New Hebrides Islands
Vanuatu (Republic of)   Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 91)
Wallis and Futuna
Wallis and Futuna (Horne) Islands
Wallis (‘Uvea) Island native
Morat, Ph./Veillon, J.-M. (1985)
Morat & Veillon, 1985, cited in Meyer, 2007
Wallis and Futuna
Wallis and Futuna (Horne) Islands
Wallis and Futuna Islands   Whistler, W. A. (1988) (p. 49)
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)
Queensland native
U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia (Kingdom of) native
U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
China
China
China (People's Republic of) native
Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013)
Damp places in shade. Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Yunnan
Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia (Republic of) native
U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Malaysia
Malaysia
Malaysia (country of) native
U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam (Socialist Republic of) native
U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)

Comments:  Not common in Niue and Tonga (Whistler, 1988; p. 49).

See also Cyrtococcum patens.

Control:  If you know of control methods for Cyrtococcum oxyphyllum, please let us know.


Need more info? Have questions? Comments? Information to contribute? Contact PIER! (pier@hear.org)

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This page was created on 11 AUG 2002 and was last updated on 30 NOV 2008.