Tripogon ravianus Sunil & Pradeep, Sida

Tripogon ravianus Sunil & Pradeep, Sida View in CoL 19(4): 803. 2001; Kabeer & V.J. Nair, Fl. Tamil Nadu Grass: 182. 2009. Type: INDIA , Tamil Nadu, Nilgiri district , Pykara near Udagamandalam , 1990 m, 03.12.2000, Sunil 2176 (holo BRIT!; iso CAL!, CALI [ CALI112116 About CALI !], K!, L!, NY!).

Tripogon bromoides Roem. & Schult. var. major Stapf ex Hook.f., Fl. Brit. View in CoL India View in CoL 7(22): 288. 1896, syn. nov., non Tripogon major Hook.f., J. Proc. Linn. Soc., Bot. View in CoL 7: 230. 1864. Lectotype (designated here): INDIA View in CoL , Tamil Nadu, Nilgiri hills, Naduvattum, 6000 ft, 11.1888, Lawson 35 (K [K000907448 digital image!]). FiGS. 37 View FiG & 41 View FiG

Plants caespitose perennials. Culms 24–70 cm high erect, stout; nodes glabrous, slightly geniculate. Leaf sheaths 3–10 cm long, linear, glabrous or hairy, ribbed, persistent; ligules a fine membrane with tuft of 1–4 mm long hairs; leaf blades 3–35 × 0.2–0.4 cm, linear-lanceolate, flat-convolute, sparsely hairy and scabrid adaxially, glabrous abaxially, margins scabrid especially towards base, acuminate to attenuate at apex. Racemes 15–40 cm long, 18–48 spikelets loosely arranged in rachis; rachis 4–7 mm long, stout, glabrous; peduncles 4–12 cm long, glabrous. Spikelets 10–25 × 2.5–3.5 mm, linear, distant, dorsiventrally flattened, leaden green, 6–14-flowered; callus bearded, hairs c. 1 mm long; rachilla 1–1.5 mm long, glabrous, almost straight, not persistent; lower glumes 3–4 × 1–2 mm, asymmetrical, ovate-lanceolate, 1-nerved, 1-keeled, keels slightly scabrid, unequally 2-lobed, acuminate at apex; upper glumes 5–6 × 1.5–2 mm, elliptic-lanceolate, 1-nerved, 1-keeled, coriaceous, lobed and awned at sinus, awns 1–1.5 mm long, scabrid, lobes 0.5–1 mm long; lemmas 3–4 × 2–3 mm (excluding awn), elliptic-lanceolate, coriaceous, 3- nerved, 4-lobed, slightly keeled, 3-awned, awns scabrid, straight, median awns 4–5 mm long, lateral awns 3–3.5 mm long, lateral lobes 2 mm long, lanceolate-acuminate; paleas 2.5–3.5 × 1–1.5 mm, elliptic-oblanceolate, hyaline, winged, 2-keeled; keels ciliate or 2-lobed, acute with a minute central notch at apex; lodicules 2, 0.5–0.75 mm long, wedge shaped; stamens 3, anthers 1.5–2 mm long, oblong, filaments 1–1.5 mm long, slender, glabrous; ovary 0.75–1 × 0.5 mm, obovate, styles 2, c. 1 mm long, slender, hyaline, stigma 1–1.5 mm long, plumose, creamy white. Caryopses 1.8–2.3 × 0.4– 0.7 mm, oblong-cylindric, light brown.

Flowering & fruiting: Flowering and fruiting from September to late December.

Habitat: This species grows from 1500–2200 m elevations on road cuts and seasonally wet rocky hillsides. It is found growing in association with Anaphalis leptophylla DC. ( Asteraceae ), Eragrostis collinensis , E. nigra Steud. , E. schweinfurthii Chiov. , Tripogon bromoides (all Poaceae ), Hypericum mysurense Wight & Arn. ( Hypericaceae ) and Spermacoce articularis L.f. ( Rubiaceae ).

Distribution: Endemic to South India .

Specimens examined: INDIA , Kerala, Idukki district , Valakettimala, Moolamattam, 09.09.1998, C . N . Sunil 2115a, 2115b ( CALI); Palakkad district, Silent Valley National Park , 25.09.2013, K . Thoiba & K . M . Manudev 135132; Nelliyampathy, Kurishumudi, s.die., C . N . Sunil 4478 ( CALI). Tamil Nadu, Coimbatore district , Velliangiri hills, 22.02.1932, S . R . Raju & Ratnavelu 250 ( MH); Ibid. , 30.09.2016, A . K . Pradeep, Nikhil Krishna & K . Thoiba 146768 ( CALI); Nilgiri district, Emerald , 09.11.2012, Remya J . & Prasanna 75485 ( TBGT); Gudallur , shooting point, 12.12.2015, K . Thoiba 146704; Naduvattam, 10.1910, Bor 11562 ( CAL); Ibid. , 23.02.2010, Santhosh Nampy 2778 ( CALI); Ibid., s.d., s.coll. 56 ( MH); Nilgiri hills, Coonor, 20.03.1870, s.coll. 11125a; Ibid., 20.03.1870, s.coll. 11125b ( CAL); Pykara, 03.12.2000, C . N . Sunil 2176, 2163; Suicide point, 12.12.2015, K . Thoiba 146707; ( CALI); Udagamandalam , 23.12.2017, Nikhil Krishna & K . Thoiba 146794 ( CALI); Ibid. , 12.09.1930, N . Narayanaswami 4190, 4273; Ibid., 09.01.1902, C . A . Barber 4161a, 4161b ( MH) .

Notes: Hooker (1896) recognized a new variety, T. bromoides var. major based on a specimen ( Lawson 35, K000907448 digital image!) collected from Naduvattam, Nilgiri hills of South India , which is treated here as conspecific with T. ravianus described from Nilgiri hills.