Lipocarpha.] clvi. cyperace^ (clarke). 47H 



brown. Style 0, or liardly any ; branches 3-, most minute, not ex- 

 serted. 



Upper Guinea. Niger Territory : Xupe, Barter, 1585 ! 



10. Ij. pulcherrima, Ridley in Trans. Linn. Soc. ser. 2, Bot. ii. 

 162. Glabrous. Stems annual, tufted, 4-14 in. long, slender. Leaves 

 as long as the stem and setaceous, or J-| the length of the stem and 

 linear. Head of 5-1 spikelets ; bracts 3-2, similar to the leaves, 

 spreading, lowest up to 2| in. long. Spikelets \ by -fjj in., dense, con- 

 spicuously squarrose from the recurved glume-tips. Glumes obovate, 

 truncate, with a linear tip as long as the glume, the sides blackish-red, 

 the back with the tip yellow-green. Hyaline scales about as long as 

 the glume (without its tip) ; lower broad -elliptic ; upper narrow-elliptic. 

 Nut J the length of the scales, narrowly-ellipsoid, trigonous, smooth, 

 black-brown. Style 0, or hardly any; branches 3, minute, hardly 

 exserted. — C. B. Clarke in Durand & Schinz, Conspect. Fl. Afr. v. 

 650, and in Dyer, Fl. Cap. vii. 260 ; Kendle in Cat. Afr. PL Welw 

 ii. 129. L. tenera, and L. atropimyurea, Boeek. Cyp. Novae, i. 21. 

 Hypcelyptitm 2ndcJierrimum, K. Schum. in Engl. Pfl. Ost-Afr. C. 127. 



xrile Xrand. British East Africa : Mount Kenia, Gregory, 87 ! lliver Tana, 

 Gregory, 97 ! 



XiO\irer Cruinea. Angola : Pungo Andongo; marshes in the Prsesidium and 

 near Quilanga, Weiwitsch, 67741 marslies at Catete, Welwitsch, 6785 partly I 

 Huilla ; in Sorghum fields, Welwitsch, 6775 ! Huilla to Humpata, Johnston / River 

 Nene, Newton / 



Soutli Central. Congo Free State : River Kasai, Luja, 220! 



l^ozamb. 2>ist. British Central Africa: Nyasaland ; Shire Highlands, 

 Buchanan, 63 !69 ! 



Also in South Africa. 



15. ASCOLEPIS, Nees ; Benth. et Hook. f. Gen. PI. iii. 1054. 



Glumes densely packed in the spikelet, numerous, imbricated on all 

 sides, minute, narrow- oblong, obtuse, hidden among the squamelliP 

 which are larger and longer, containing perfect flowers. Squamella 

 between the nut and the glume, parallel to the glume, with an elongate 

 flattened conic beak, holding the nut in a hollow or pocket near its 

 base. Style small, linear; branches 3 or 2, linear, minute. Nut very 

 small, narrowly obovoid, trigonous or biconvex, smooth, brown-black. — 

 Glabrous. Stem without any nodes between the basal leaves and the 



1 head of 1-6 spikelets. 



Species, the 9 here described ; endemic in Tropical Africa, except that 1 

 species is also in South Africa, 1 also in Madagascar and South America. 



The large squamella appears made up of 2 lateral organs coalescent completely 

 on the anticous t-ide, imperfectly or not at all on tlie posticons side. They would be 



2 lateral bracteoles (prophylla), not known in any other genus of CyperacecB. 

 *EuASCOLEPis. — Lower part of squfimella narrow, thin, hollowed slightly to hold 



the nut ; upper part elongate-conic. Style 3-fid. — The species of this group differ 

 little bat in the size and colour of the heads. 



