Observations on the genus Elymus (Poaceae: Triticeae) in Australia

Abstract

In Australia, the genus Elymus L., as currently interpreted, includes two species: E. scaber (R.Br.)Á.Löve [with two varieties E. scabervar. scaber and E. scaber var.plurinervis (Vickery) B.K.Simon]; andE. multiflorus (Hook.f.) Löve & Connor. A thirdspecies, apomictic E. rectisetus (Nees)Á.Löve & Connor, which is naturalised in New Zealand from Australia has not been included in Australian regional Floras except as asynonym of E. scaber. A preliminary phenetic analysis ofmorphological characters of 19 specimens and reports on recent work indicatethat at least four major entities exist: short-awnedentities (E. scaber sensu Labillardière);long-awned apomictic entities (sensu E. rectisetus);long-awned entities with large glumes (E. scaber var.plurinervis); and very short-awned entities(E. multiflorus). In a study of seed set, long-awnedentities of E. scaber exhibited relatively low seed set(12–26%), a reported feature ofE. rectisetus. The results, taxonomy, and recent studiesof the reproductive biology, geo- graphic distribution and genome constitutionof taxa of Elymus common to Australia and New Zealandare discussed, and a revision of the current taxonomic ranking is suggested