Becquerelia cymosa Brongn.

  • Family

    Cyperaceae (Magnoliophyta)

  • Scientific Name

    Becquerelia cymosa Brongn.

  • Primary Citation

    Voy. Monde (11): 161, t. 27. 1833

  • Description

    Robust, caespitose perennial; culms erect, 45-150 cm tall, 3-sided. Leaves basal or cauline; largest leaves with sheath ca. 6-15 cm long, green or tinged reddish, the blade 1-1.5 m x 9-28 mm, green above and beneath or occasionally tinged reddish beneath basally, the margins usually lightly scabrous. Inflorescence a 3-7 branched panicle; bract subtending each panicle leaf-like, the basal bract with sheaths 1.5-4(-7) cm long and blades 65-100 x 0.9-28 cm; each panicle with a pedicel 3-7(-10) cm long, comprising 6-12 branches, the longest branch 1.5-5 cm long; each branch with 1-3 fruit bearing spikelets or branching secondarily. Fruiting spikelets globose, ca. 2-2.8 mm diam., the longest scales 3-4 x (1.6-)2.6-3.2 mm, the tip acuminate. Hypogynium subtending fruit as wide as fruit. Fruit plano-convex, the convex side depressed obloid, 1.7-2.8 x 0.6-1.2 mm, white to tan or rarely brown, smooth to lightly rugulose, shiny. Well drained forests, usually on slopes.

    Koyama (1967) recognized two subspecies of B. cymosa, subsp. cymosa and subsp. merkeliana (Nees) T. Koyama. The former is characterized by fruits at least 2.5 mm wide, the spikelet scales (glumes) 3-3.5 mm long, and the inflorescence looser and less branched while the latter has fruits less than 2 mm wide, scales 2.5-3 mm long, and denser, more highly branched inflorescences.

    Description taken from Thomas (1997).

  • Floras and Monographs

    Becquerelia cymosa Brongn.: [Article] Mori, S. A., et al. 1997. Guide to the vascular plants of central French Guiana: Part 1. Pteridophytes, gymnosperms, and monocotyledons. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 76: 1-422.

    Becquerelia cymosa Brongn.: [Article] Maguire, Bassett. 1967. The botany of the Guayana Highland--Part VII. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 17: 1-439.