30 CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE NATIONAL, HERBARIUM. 



DESCRIPTION. 



Culms woody, branching, clambering over bushes, glabrous, the main culm 

 as much as 5.5 mm. thick, and 5 meters long; sheaths glabrous or more or less 

 pilose, striate, ciliate, densely villous on the collar ; ligule a short ciliate mem- 

 brane ; blades ovate-lanceolate or elliptic-lanceolate, as much as 10 cm. long and 

 3 cm. wide on the main flowering culms, usually 4 to 6 cm. long and 1 to 2 cm. 

 wide on the lateral flowering branches, rather thin, narrowed and usually asym- 

 metric at base, sometimes a little cordate-clasping, puberulent, or sometimes 

 glabrate on the upper surface; panicles oblong-ovoid, 7 to 10 cm. long, 3 to 5 

 cm. wide, those on the lateral branches smaller, the lower branches somewhat 

 distant, spreading or somewhat reflexed, all rather compactly flowered, puberu- 

 lent, the pedicels angled, rather stout, 1 to 2 mm. long ; spikelets ovoid, becom- 

 ing nearly globose at maturity, 3 to 4 mm. long; first glume about one-third, 

 second glume about two-thirds, as long as the spikelet ; first and second sterile 

 lemmas about equal and about as long as the fertile lemma, the glumes and 

 lemmas slightly woolly at the tip, the second sterile lemma infolding the fruit 

 more closely than usual for the first lemma in other species ; fruit ovoid-globose, 

 obtuse, because of the presence of a second sterile lemma the palea side facing 

 the second glume. 



This species has been confused with L. ruscifolia and was included under 

 that name in a recent account of the grasses of the West Indies, 1 in which the 

 following statement appears: "In all the Trinidad specimens the spikelets con- 

 tain a second sterile lemma, a character not found in any other species known 

 to us. This second sterile lemma equals the first, contains a hyaline palea, and 

 infolds the fruit rather more closely than the sterile lemma commonly does in 

 other species. The fruit borne one joint higher on the rachilla consequently 

 faces in the direction opposite to the one usual in Paniceae; that is, the palea 

 side of the fruit faces the second instead of the first glume." A reconsideration 

 of the group led the writer to the conclusion that, " we have here a distinct 

 species, for not only is there this unusual character of a second sterile lemma 

 but also a distinct geographical range. Of the group to which it had been 

 referred, all the specimens from Trinidad, the lower Orinoco, and eastern 

 Brazil have a second sterile lemma, while outside of this range, that is, north 

 and west, there is but one sterile lemma in all the specimens examined. In 

 other respects, such as shape of blades and panicle, pubescence, and shape 

 and size of spikelets, the new species does not differ from L. ruscifolia, from 

 which it has been separated. The specimens of the new species, Lqsiacis 

 aaomala, agree closely among themselves in all these characters, but also 

 agree with many specimens referred to the more variable species, L. ruscifolia." 



DISTRIBUTION. 



Copses and edges of forest, Trinidad to eastern Brazil. 



Trinidad: Port of Spain, Amer. Or. Nat. Herb. 595; Hitchcock 10001. St. 

 Joseph, Hitchcock 10021. San Fernando, Hitchcock 10117. Chacachacare, 

 Hitchcock 10063. Cedros, Hitchcock 10136. St. Margarets, Broadway 

 2627. Moruga, Broadway 2504. Without locality, Broadicay 2564; Bot. 

 Oard. Herb. 2303. 



Venezuela: Santa Cafcilina, Rusby d Squires 358. Island of Margarita, Miller 

 d Johnston 184. 



1 Hitchc. & Chase, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 339. 1917. 



