Abstract
A climbing bamboo endemic to North Queensland in Australia, previously named Bambusa moreheadiana, represents a new monotypic endemic genus there, Mullerochloa. Its clambering-scrambling, generally non-twining habit, sympodial rhizomes, inflated proximal ends of culm internodes and culm sheaths with a wrinkled basal zone, are distinctive vegetative characters. Additional important characters of the reproductive system include the iterauctant flowering habit, producing clusters of pseudospikelets, each with 4–9 flowers and a terminal vestigial flower; paleas that conspicuously exceed the lemmas in length; consistently four anthers borne on a filament tube; and a glabrous ovary. A discussion of the circumscription of the Asiatic genus Bambusa, with which a number of other distinct genera, including Mullerochloa, have been confused, is provided.
Highlights
Three species of woody bamboo have been documented as indigenous to Australia
The other two species of woody bamboo grow in rain forest in the northern Queensland region and develop slender, clambering or leaning culms: both these species were originally classified as species of Bambusa Schreb., B. forbesii (Ridl.) Holttum and B. moreheadiana F.M
The other two clambering-scrambling bamboos have been placed within Bambusa only with much uncertainty
Summary
A climbing bamboo endemic to North Queensland in Australia, previously named Bambusa more headiana, represents a new monotypic endemic genus there, Mullerochloa. Its clambering-scrambling, generally non-twining habit, sympodial rhizomes, inflated proximal ends of culm internodes and culm sheaths with a wrinkled basal zone, are distinctive vegetative characters. Additional important characters of the reproductive system include the iterauctant flowering habit, producing clusters of pseudospikelets, each with 4 – 9 flowers and a terminal vestigial flower; paleas that conspicuously exceed the lemmas in length; consistently four anthers borne on a filament tube; and a glabrous ovary. A discussion of the circumscription of the Asiatic genus Bambusa, with which a number of other distinct genera, including Mullerochloa, have been confused, is provided
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