Family: Poaceae
Group: Monocot
Substrate:
Terrestrial
Habit:
Herb
Perennation:
Annual
Native Range: Southern United States, the West Indies, Mexico, Central America and South America. Spreading beyond its native range as a weed.
Map of select IRC data for peninsular Florida
SOUTH FLORIDA Occurrence:
Present
SOUTH FLORIDA Native Status:
Native
Comments: Although we have treated this as non-native in the past, this was collected in Key West by Ferdinand Rugel between 1842 and 1849 and on an island in Estero Bay (probably Mound Key) by A.P. Garber in 1878. There are other early collections from shell mounds and coastal uplands from the Flamingo area in Everglades National Park northwest to Charlotte Harbor. Although weedy, it appears that this is a native componant of our flora, at least from Key West to Charlotte Harbor. It may have spread as a weed elsewhere from there.
For more images, click on the USDA PLANTS link below.
Synonyms:
U. fusca var. reticulata, U. fasciculata var. reticulata.
FLORIDA KEYS Occurrence:
Possibly Extirpated
FLORIDA KEYS Native Status:
Possibly Extirpated
IRC FLORIDA KEYS Status:
Possibly Extirpated
Map of select IRC data for the Florida Keys
Florida Keys History and Distribution: Collected by Ferdinand Rugel between 1842 and 1849 on Key West. Reported in
1913 by John Kunkel Small for hammocks in the lower Keys. Also reported for Big Pine Key (Dickson 1953, Franklin 1968) and the National Key Deer Refuge (Austin et al. 1980). No recent herbarium vouchers or observations are known.
