Desmostachya
Encyclopedia
Desmostachya is a genus
of grass in the Poaceae
family.
(1817–1911) and Otto Stapf
(1857–1933), were originally each credited separately as the naming authority for the taxon (the type specimen for this section of Eragrostis being Eragrostis cynosuroides (Retz.
) P.Beauv.
, itself based on a previous species taxon, Poa cynosuroides Retz.). It is generally accepted that Eragrostis sect. Desmostachya Hook.f. is the correct name for the taxon. However, E. sect. Desmostachya Stapf is accepted as the basionym
for the genus name Desmostachya. A year after it was published as a section of Eragrostis, Desmostachya was published as a genus in its own right in Flora Capensis 7: 316. 1898. Two species are recognized:
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of grass in the Poaceae
Poaceae
The Poaceae is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called grasses, although the term "grass" is also applied to plants that are not in the Poaceae lineage, including the rushes and sedges...
family.
Taxonomy
The genus Desmostachya was originally published as Eragrostis sect. Desmostachya in The Flora of British India 7: 324. 1897. Somehow two prominent botanists, Joseph Dalton HookerJoseph Dalton Hooker
Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker OM, GCSI, CB, MD, FRS was one of the greatest British botanists and explorers of the 19th century. Hooker was a founder of geographical botany, and Charles Darwin's closest friend...
(1817–1911) and Otto Stapf
Otto Stapf
Otto Stapf FRS was an Austrian born botanist and taxonomist.Stapf trained in Vienna, moving to Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in 1890. He was keeper of the Herbarium from 1909 to 1920...
(1857–1933), were originally each credited separately as the naming authority for the taxon (the type specimen for this section of Eragrostis being Eragrostis cynosuroides (Retz.
Anders Jahan Retzius
Anders Jahan Retzius was a Swedish chemist, botanist and entomologist.-Biography:Born in Kristianstad, he matriculated at Lund University in 1758, where he graduated as a filosofie magister in 1766. He also trained as an apothecary apprentice. He reveived the position of docent of chemistry at...
) P.Beauv.
Palisot de Beauvois
Ambroise Marie François Joseph Palisot, Baron de Beauvois 27 July 1752 Arras - 21 January 1820 Paris, was a French naturalist.Palisot collected insects in Oware, Benin, Saint Domingue, and the United States, during the period 1786 – 1797. Trained as a botanist, Palisot published a significant...
, itself based on a previous species taxon, Poa cynosuroides Retz.). It is generally accepted that Eragrostis sect. Desmostachya Hook.f. is the correct name for the taxon. However, E. sect. Desmostachya Stapf is accepted as the basionym
Basionym
Basionym is a term used in botany, regulated by the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature...
for the genus name Desmostachya. A year after it was published as a section of Eragrostis, Desmostachya was published as a genus in its own right in Flora Capensis 7: 316. 1898. Two species are recognized:
- Desmostachya bipinnataDesmostachya bipinnataDesmostachya bipinnata, commonly known in English by the names Halfa grass, Big cordgrass, and Salt reed-grass, is an Old World perennial grass, long known and used in human history...
(L.) Stapf (commonly known variously as, Kusha grass, Kusa grass, or Darbha Grass ) - Desmostachya cynosuroides Stapf ex Massey
- List source :