Chase — Notes on Genera of Panicece. IV. 159 



31. Genus ALLOTEROPSIS Presl. 



Alloteropsis Presl, Rel. Haenk. 1 : 344. pi. 47. 1830. A single species, 

 A. distachya, is included in the genus which is erroneously described. 

 Scribner (Mem. Mo. Bot. Gard. 10 : 37. pi. 33. 1899) and Hitchcock 

 (Contr. Nat. Herb. 12 : 210. 1909) explain the error and emend the 

 genus. Presl' s type specimen was examined and photographed in the 

 National Museum at Prague by Professor Hitchcock. It is the same 

 species as Panicum semialatum R. Br. (Prodr. Nov. Holl. 192. 1810), 

 Alloteropsis semialata Hitchc. (1. c). There are two plants of the same 

 species on the sheet, one with a ticket marked " Peruanse montanae " 

 the other with one marked " Regio montana, Luzon." The Peruvian 

 locality is clearly erroneous. 



Bluffia Nees, Del. Sem. Hort. Hamb. 8. 1834. The genus is described 

 and a single species, B. eckloniana Nees, " ab Ecklono * * * in 

 Africa australi detecti," included under it. By Hackel (Durand & 

 Schinz, Consp. Fl. Afr. 5 : 764. 1895), this species is reduced to a variety 

 of Panicum semialatum; by Hooker (Fl. Brit. Ind. 7 : 64. 1896) it is 

 referred to Axonopus semialatus as a synonym, and by Stapf (Dyer, Fl. 

 Cap. 7 : 418. 1898) it is reduced to a variety of that species. To us it 

 appears to be specifically distinct. 



Holosetum Steud. Syn. PI. Glum. 2 : 118. 1854. This is based on a 

 single species, H. philippicum Steud. " Herbr. Cuming nr. 1363 et 1414. 

 Ins. Philip." Cuming's no. 1363 was examined in the Kew Herbarium. 

 It proves to be Alloteropsis semialata. 



This genus of two known Old World species does not appear to be see A\a.<<kew 

 closely allied to any other. The two subindurated, awn-pointed florets to t tbe-Le. ^. e 



some appear to suggest species of Arundinella, under which genus 

 Bentham (Fl. Austr. 7 : 545. 1878) describes a specimen of Alloteropsis 

 semialata, as Arundinella Schultzii Benth., though he gives Panicum 

 semialatum on page 472 of the same work. In both species of this genus, 

 as shown by specimens in the National Herbarium, there is not infre- 

 quently found a rudiment, 0.3 mm. or more long, beyond the palea of 

 the fertile floret. 



The genus is distinguished by the awn-pointed, similarly subindurated 

 staminate and fertile florets, the margins of the fertile lemma thin, flat, 

 the palea not enclosed at the summit, in combination with the subdigi- 

 tate inflorescence, the short-pediceled spikelets in clusters along the 

 racemes. 



The involucrate genera and the others excluded under the first and 

 second divisions of the key will be considered in a subsequent paper now 

 in preparation. 



