29 Jour., Bom. Nat. Hist. Sec, Vol. XXXII No. 1. [Aug, 1, 1927. 



(McCann 9410 !), behind Duke's Nose (McCann 9393 !}.—£. M. Country : Dhar- 

 war (Sedgwick and Bell 4146!, Woodrow). 2,400 ft., rain 34 in.; Kuput 

 Hill, Dharwar District (Talbot 2323\).— Kanar a : Halyal (Talbot 1733!, 

 2385 !). 



15. Peltophorus, Desv. (Stapf Fl. Trop. Afr. ix. 59) 



Annual or perennial short grasses with slender, much-branched, rarely 

 simple stems. Leaves linear, narrow, conduplicate in bud , then flat; ligules 

 short, membranous. Racemes much compressed, rather rjender, straight or 

 ■curved, very conspicuously dorsiventral, Spikelets pseudo-opposite owing to 

 the fusion of joints and pedicels, each pair made up of a sessile (secondary) 

 spikelet and the pedicelled companion of the sessile spikelet of the next lower 

 node. Spikelets 2-nate on the rbachis of spike-like, spathe-supported racemes 

 which terminate the stems and their branches, different in sex and shape. 

 Joints and pedicels fused into somewhat stout internodes, convex on the back, 

 hollowed out on the inner face for the reception of the sessile spikelet ; disarti- 

 culation at a right angle to the rhachis, tips of internodes truncate with two 

 concavities corresponding to the next upper sessile and the adjacent pedicelled 

 spikelet. Sessile spikelet dorsally much compressed. Florets 2, lower male or 

 neuter and then with or without a valvule, upper bisexual, awnless. Glumes 

 equal or the upper shorter ; lower coriaceous, transversely rugose or muricate, 

 conspicuously winged from the keels, upper membranous, immersed in the 

 cavity formed by the joint and pedicel, usually 3-nerved, keeled, often in- 

 distincly. Valves hyaline, nerveless or 2-3-nerved. Valvule, if present, 

 hyaline, nerveless or 2-nerved, Lodicules 2, cuneate. Stamens 3, Stigmas 

 linear, laterally exserted low down. Grain oblong; embryo equalling the 

 grain. Pedicelled spikelet male or neuter c Lower glume coriaceous, smooth, 

 asymmetrically or unilaterally winged, upper variously winged from the keel. 

 Florets as in the sessile spikelet but male or barren. 



Species 5.— India (4) and Tropical Africa (1). 

 I. Lower involucral glume 2— aristate ... 1. P. diver gens. 



II. Lower involucral glume with a simple awn 

 or acuminate* 



1. Lower involacral glume broadly ovate, 



acuminate (not awned) ... ... 2. P. acuminatus . 



2. Lower involucral glume lanceolate with a 



slender scabrid awn ... ... 3. P. Talboti. 



1. Peltophorus divergens, comb. nov. Blatter and McCann. 



Rottboellia diver gens, Hack. Monogr. Androp. 293 ; Lisboa in Jour. Bom. 

 Nat. Hist. Soc. vi (1891), 195; Hook. f. in F. B. L, vii, 155 ; Cke, ii, 953. 



Description, : Cke. 1. c. 



Locality: Konkan : Trombay (McCann A71!). — Dcccan : Mahableshwar, 

 4,500 ft., rain 270 inches (Sedgwick and Bell 4560!, Lisboa); Panchgani 

 (Blatter and Hall berg B1252 !, B1259 !, B12f3 !, B1286 !), behind the Tableland 

 on rocks (Blatter 3805!); Satara (Lisboa); Lonavla (Bhide !) ; Khandala 

 (Woodrow), Saddle, very common all over (McCann 9616 !). — 5". M. Country : 

 Amboli Gha<- (Talbot 4305 !) ; Belgaum (Ritchie 808, 827).— Kanar a : Castle 

 Rock, 1,800 ft., rain 300 inches (Sedgwick and Bell 4295 !), Karwar (Talbot 

 3171 !).— Usually growing on rocks in tufts. 



Note. The spikes are very brittle when dry and always fall off. 



Distribution : W. Peninsula. 



2. Peltophorus acuminatus, comb. nov. Blatter and McCann. 



Rottboslliu acuminata, Hack. Monogr. Androp. 291; Hook. f. F. B. I. vii, 

 155 ; Cke. ii. 953. 



Description : Cke. 1. c — We have examined Talbot's specimen No. 1291 and 

 found that the lower involucral glume is much longer than 8 mm. (1/3 in.) 

 going up to 10 and 12 mm. 



Locality : Konkan : Marmagoa (Talbot 2572 !, 1291) ; Vasco daGama (Herb. 

 St. X. C. 9483 !) ; Malwan (Woodrow).— Kanar a : Karwar (Talbot 3171 !, 

 2539, Hall berg and McCann A75 !, Lisboa); Katgal (Hallberg aud McCann 

 9934 !) ; Castle Rock (Bhide !). 



Distribution: W. Peninsula. Hooker f., but not Cooke, mentions also the 

 Deccan Peninsula collected in by G. Thomson, 



[16] 



