Parahyparrhenia khannae, Tiwari, Arjun Prasad, Chorghe, Alok R., Landge, Shahid Nawaz & Mujaffar, Shaikh, 2020

Tiwari, Arjun Prasad, Chorghe, Alok R., Landge, Shahid Nawaz & Mujaffar, Shaikh, 2020, A new species of Parahyparrhenia (Poaceae: Andropogoneae) from India, Phytotaxa 446 (1), pp. 55-60 : 56-57

Parahyparrhenia khannae A. P. Tiwari & Chorghe sp. nov. ( Fig. 1 & 2 )

Diagnosis:— Parahyparrhenia khannae is similar to P. bellariensis in having dorsal groove in lower glume of sessile spikelet, but differs in having plant height 10–30 cm long (vs. 60–90 cm long), leaf blade 2.5–6.0 cm long (vs. 7.0– 20 cm long), ligule lacerate membrane (vs. fringe of hairs), racemes 2.5–4.5 cm long (vs. 5–6 cm long), homogamous spikelets 1–2 (vs. 4–5), sessile spikelet 4–5 mm long (vs. 8–9 mm long), glumes of sessile spikelet nerveless (vs. 5–6 nerved) and anthers 0.5–0.8 mm long (vs. c. 3 mm long)

Type:— INDIA, Madhya Pradesh, Ratlam district, Sailana Tahsil, Sailana Bird Sanctuary ( Shikarwadi area ) 23°25’48.75”N 74°54’44.48”E, 8 October 2015, A. P. Tiwari 75590 (Holotype CAL; Isotype BSA) .

Annual grass, 10 –30 cm high. Culms, slender, terete, glabrous, purplish at nodes; node glabrous. Leaf blade filiform, flat to involute, 2.5–6.0 cm long,1.0– 1.5 mm wide, glabrous or slightly puberulous above, granulate beneath, margins smooth; sheath terete, glabrous, 2–3 cm long; ligule lacerate membrane, 0.8–1.0 mm long. Raceme solitary, slender, 2.5–4.5 cm long, terminating to culm and branches, subtended by a spatheole, bearing 4–8 fertile spikelets on each; spatheole linear, 3–6 cm long, herbaceous, glaucous when young; rachis flattened, 1.5–2.0 mm long, ciliate on margins, oblique at tip. Homogamous spikelets 1–2 at the base racemes, solitary or paired, neuter to male. Sessile spikelet 4.0–5.0 mm long, linear-oblong, awned, falling entire; callus pungent, 1.0– 1.5 mm long, attached obliquely, bearded with white hairs. Lower glume 4.0–5.0 mm long, coriaceous, linear-oblong, with a deep median groove on the dorsal surface, nerveless, margins inflexed, scaberulous on dorsal surface in above upper half, 2-keeled, 2-toothed at apex; teeth connected by a membranous tissue. Upper glume 4.0– 4.5 mm long, subcoriaceous, narrowly oblong-lanceolate, glabrous on dorsal surface, nerveless, muticose at apex, margins inflexed, ciliolate in upper half. Lower lemma 2.5–3.0 mm long, membranous, elliptic-oblong, dentate and ciliolate apex. Palea absent. Upper lemma reduced to a hyaline base of geniculate awn, linear, 3.0– 3.4 mm long, bidentate; awn geniculate, 4.5–6.0 cm long, with twisted and spirally hairy column. Palea absent. Lodicule 2. Stamen 3; anther 0.5–0.8 mm long. Caryopsis 3.0– 3.5 mm long, purplish, narrowly oblong, glabrous, with a deep median groove on the dorsal surface. Pedicelled spikelet 5.5–6.5 mm long, glabrous; pedicel 1.5–2.0 mm long, ciliate on margins; callus oblong, 0.5–1.0 mm long, acute and straight at apex, glabrous, with depressions on ventral side. Lower glume 5.5–6.5 mm long, subcoriaceous, linear-lanceolate, 7-nerved, 2-teeth at apex, scaberulous on margins. Upper glume 5.0– 5.5 mm long, membranous, linear-lanceolate, ciliate on margins, acuminate at apex.

Distribution:— INDIA: Madhya Pradesh, Ratlam and Jhabua districts; Gujarat, Rajkot district, Saurashtra University. Endemic.

Habitat &Associated species:— Occur in open grassland at an altitude of 1,444 – 1,675 ft with associate grass species such as Aristida redacta Stapf (1892: 85) , Aristida setacea Retzius (1786: 22) , Chrysopogon fulvus ( Sprengel 1815: 10) Chiovenda (1929: 327) , Heteropogon contortus ( Linnaeus 1753: 1045) P. Beauvois ex Roemer & Schultes (1817: 836) , Melanocenchris jacquemontii Jaubert & Spach (1851: 325) and Sehima nervosum ( Rottler 1803: 218) Stapf (1917: 36) etc.

Phenology:— Flowering and fruiting was observed from September to October.

Etymology:—The species is named in honour of Dr. K.K. Khanna (Former Scientist, Botanical Survey of India, Central Regional Centre, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India) for his contributions in the field of angiosperms taxonomy, specially related to the Flora of Madhya Pradesh.

Additional Specimens Examined:— INDIA: Madhya Pradesh, Jhabua district, Petlawad, Salunea ( Kharmor area ) 23°55’48.75”N / 74° 48’ 0”E, 10 October 2015, A. P. Tiwari 75595 ( BSA) ; Gujarat, Rajkot, Saurashtra University 10 th October 1977 Bharkava 50 ( BSI!) .

Notes:— Deshpande et al. (1978) reported P. bellariensis from Rajkot, Gujarat based on Bharkava 50 (BSI!). After studying specimen present in BSI we have concluded that it is not P. bellariensis but the different species which we are describing here as P. khannae .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Illustrations of Parahyparrhenia khannae A. Habit; B. Ligule; C. Pair of spikelets; Sessile spikelet: D. Sessile spikelet, E. Lower glume, F. Upper glume, G. Lower lemma, H. Upper lemma, I. Stamens, J. Pistil, K. Caryopsis; Pedicelled spikelet: L. Pedicelled spikelet, M. Lower glume, N. Upper glume. (Drawn from A.P. Tiwari 75590 by Mujaffar Shaikh).

FIGURE 2. Photoplate of Parahyparrhenia khannae A. Habit; B. Ligule; Sessile spikelet: C. Sessile spikelet, D. Lower glume, E. Upper glume, F. Upper lemma, G. Caryopsis; Pedicelled spikelet: H. Pedicelled spikelet, I. Lower glume, J. Upper glume.