The genus Stipa L. in Tasmania. Part 3 - Revised taxonomy

Abstract

The twelve indigenous Stipa species occurring in Tasmania are revised. These are S. aphylla (Rodway) Townrow (endemic), S. bigeniculata Hughes, S. clelandii Summerhayes and Hubbard, S. falcata Hughes, S. flavescens Labillardiere, S. nervosa var. neutralis Vickery, S. mollis R. Br01vn, S. semibarbata R. Brown, S. pubinodis Trinius and Ruprecht, S. stipoides (Hooker) Veldkamp, S. stuposa Hughes (endemic) and s. variabilis Hughes. A key to species is based on both floral and vegetative characters. Emended species descriptions are based on type and/or matched specimens aug;nented by extensive Tasmanian collections. Detailed figures produced at standard magnifications of each species illustrate new characters of specific significance including adaxial leaf surface ornamentation figured in scanning micrographs and numerous details of floret structure. S. elatior Hughes and S. compacta Hughes are reduced to synonomy with S. flavescens Labillardiere. S. aphanoneura Hughes, S. setacea R. Brown, S. pubescens R. Brown, S. elegantissima Labillardiere, S. laeviculmis Nees, S. eremophila Reader, and S. hemipogon Bentham are excluded names. The appendix includes a collectors' index (Tasmanian specimens), text tables and descriptions, and figures of S. nervosa Vickery, S. pubescens R.Br. and S. blackii C.E. Hubbard closely allied to and previously confused with S. nervosa var. neutralis, S. pubinodis and S. stuposa respectively.