Eremochloa ophiuroides (Munro) Hack., Poaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  no

Threat only at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  High risk, score: 8 (Go to the risk assessment)

Common name(s): [more details]

English: centipede grass, lazy-man's grass

Habit:  grass

Description: 

Genus:  "Slender perennials with solitary terminal racemes.  Spikelets appearing solitary at each node, but actually paired, only the sessile developing, the pediceled reduced to a glume-like or stipiform pedicel; sessile spikelets dorsally compressed, awnless, imbricate along one side of a tardily disarticulating rachis; glume chartaceous, the first broad, flat or only slightly rounded on the back, the margins narrowly inflexed, 2-keeled, the keels spinulose or rigidly pectinate, at least on the lower part; second glume 3-nerved, the midnerve sometimes keeled, lemmas hyaline, the lower 3-nerved, triandrous, the palea similar; fertile lemma entire, usually nerveless, the palea similar but narrower."

Species:  "Low perennial, creeping, stems rooting at lower nodes; racemes smooth, spikelike, terminal and axillary, slenderly long-stalked, 1-3 cm long" (Stone, 1970; p. 233).

"Habit: Perennial; mat forming. Rhizomes elongated. Culms erect, or geniculately ascending; 1-30 cm long; 0.8-1.2 mm diam.; 2-3-noded. Leaves mostly basal. Leaf-sheaths keeled. Ligule a fringe of hairs. Leaf-blades 3-10 cm long; 2-4 mm wide. Leaf-blade margins glabrous. Leaf-blade apex obtuse. Inflorescence: Inflorescence composed of racemes. Racemes 1; single; straight, or arcuate; unilateral; 3-6 cm long. Rhachis fragile at the nodes; flattened; glabrous on margins. Rhachis internodes columnar, or clavate; 2 mm long. Rhachis internode tip crateriform. Spikelets appressed; in pairs. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 1 in the cluster. Pedicels linear; foliaceous; 3-4 mm long. Sterile spikelets: Companion sterile spikelets represented by barren pedicels. Fertile spikelets: Spikelets comprising 1 basal sterile florets; 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets oblong; dorsally compressed; compressed strongly; 4-4.5 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures. Spikelet callus pubescent; base truncate; with central boss; attached transversely. Glumes: Glumes dissimilar; exceeding apex of florets; firmer than fertile lemma. Lower glume oblong; 1 times length of spikelet; coriaceous; 2-keeled; winged on keel; winged broadly; winged near apex; 7-veined. Lower glume primary vein pectinately spinose. Lower glume surface convex. Lower glume apex truncate. Upper glume ovate; coriaceous; 1-keeled; winged on keel; winged below; 3-veined. Upper glume apex acute. Florets: Basal sterile florets male; with palea. Lemma of lower sterile floret oblong; hyaline; ciliate on margins; obtuse. Palea of lower sterile floret 1 length of lemma. Fertile lemma oblong; hyaline; without keel. Lemma apex obtuse. Palea 1 times length of lemma; hyaline. Flower: Anthers 3; 1.8-2 mm long" (World Grass Species).

Habitat/ecology:  (no habitat/ecology info known by PIER)

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Southeast Asia (Stone, 1970; p. 233).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced	Stone, Benjamin C. (1970) (p. 233)
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1987) (p. 43)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Taiwan Taiwan	Taiwan Island	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)

Comments:  According to Stone (1970; p. 233), this species was experimentally introduced by the Guam Experiment Station in 1927 as a lawn grass, but has probably disappeared.

Additional information:  Additional online information about Eremochloa ophiuroides is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Taxonomic information about Eremochloa ophiuroides may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Clayton, W. D./Harman, K. T./Williamson, H. 2002. World Grass Species: Descriptions, Identification, and Information Retrieval (online resource).

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce. 1987. A geographical checklist of the Micronesian monocotyledonae. Micronesica 20:1-126.

Stone, Benjamin C. 1970. The flora of Guam. Micronesica 6:1-659.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2007. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.