Anthosachne kingiana

Anthosachne kingiana

Declining (NZ TCS)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Pooideae
Genus: Anthosachne
Species:
A. kingiana
Binomial name
Anthosachne kingiana
(Endl.) Govaerts

Anthosachne kingiana, tūtae kurī (Māori), blue grass (Australian), or Phillip Island wheat grass (Australian - Norfolk Island), is a species of true grass in the tribe Triticeae. It has two identified subspecies:

Description

A short, tufted, perennial, glaucous to green grass. Inflorescences have 6-15 spikelets that lie closely against the rachis, which contain 7-12 florets with short awns.[5]

Easily distinguished from other Anthosachne in Aotearoa/New Zealand by its awns which are usually short and straight. Individuals with unusually long awns could be confused with A. solandri, but can be distinguished by the thin, rolled leaves, and the straight awns.[5][6]

In Australia, A. kingiana and its close relative A. fertilis could be confused with the straight-awned A. rectiseta, A. longiseta, however, both of those species have awns greater than 17mm. A. kingiana can be distinguished from A. fertilis by its shorter awns, which are 0-80% of the length of the lemma, versus 70-130% of the length of the lemma in A. fertilis.[7] Anthosachne fertilis, while recognised as a distinct by the Australian Plant Census,[8] is recognised by Plants of the World Online and The World Checklist of Vascular Plants as a synonym of Anthosachne kingiana subsp. multiflora.[9][10]

Connor distinguished A. kingiana subsp. kingiana from the Australian and Aotearoa/New Zealand A. kingiana subsp. multiflora on the basis that it has many prickle-teeth on the lemmas and glumes of its spikelets, and tends to have longer awns.[11] Barkworth added to this, specifying that the longest awns of A. kingiana subsp. kingiana are longer than the lemma bodies, whereas in A. kingiana subsp. multiflora, the awns are shorter than or equal to the length of the lemma bodies.[7]

Distribution and habitat

A. kingiana subsp. multiflora is indigenous to Aotearoa/New Zealand and Eastern Australia. In Aotearoa/New Zealand it is largely found in coastal areas of the North Island and Eastern South Island. It is largely found in open habitats, such as cliffs and rocks, frequently on limestone. It is sparse south of the Hauraki Gulf, and occasionally occurs inland.[5]

A. kingiana subsp. kingiana was previously considered an extinct subspecies endemic to Phillip Island, an island off Norfolk Island, but has since been rediscovered on Phillip Island, and found in Norfolk Island and Lord Howe Island.[3]

On Lord Howe Island, Anthosachne kingiana subsp. kingiana occurs in open habitats where coastal basalt-derived rocky cliffs intergrade into a shrub zone that emerges from littoral rainforest.  It is associated with several grasses and herbs such as Dichelachne crinita,  Poa poiformis, Senecio howeanus,  Sporobolus virginicus, Tetragonia tetragonioides and shrub species, such as Cassinia tenuifolia,  Dodonaea viscosa,  Leucopogon parviflorus, Melaleuca howeana and  Wollastonia biflora.

Threats

Anthosachne kingiana subsp. multiflora is listed as At Risk - Naturally Uncommon in Aotearoa/New Zealand by the New Zealand Threat Classification System.[12] North Island populations have reportedly declined in recent decades, with competition with spreading coastal weeds, such as Cortaderia jubata, C. selloana, and Sporobolus africanus, being implicated.

On Phillip Island, Anthosachne kingiana subsp. kingiana had been considered extinct, along with other plants endemic to the island, due to herbivory by introduced feral goats, pigs, and rabbits. Following the eradication of rabbits and the dying-out of goats and pigs, the grass was rediscovered in 1987, having recolonised the area. It was one of two plant taxa previously thought extinct to be rediscovered on Phillip Island, the other being Abutilon julianae.[3] In 1963, a specimen was also collected on Norfolk Island itself.[13]

Anthosachne kingiana subsp. kingiana is considered critically endangered on Lord Howe Island by the New South Wales government, under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. Anthosachne populations on the island had been previously mistakenly called Agyrpogon scabrum, an older name for Anthosachne scabra,[14] but were recognised as Anthosachne kingiana subsp. kingiana by 1994.[13] Recent surveys on the Island have located up to 30 individuals, with the estimated population size being less than 50 plants. The population is threatened by environmental and demographic stochasticity due to their restricted distributions and population sizes, and is further threatened through competition with introduced invasive plants such as Briza minor,  Bromus diandrus,  Bromus cartharticus,  Erigeron bonariensis, Ipomoea cairica, Paspalum dilatatum,  Sonchus oleraceus, and  Sporobolus africanus.[14]

Taxonomy

What is now considered Anthosachne kingiana originally comprised two species: Triticum kingianum (described from Phillip Island specimens in 1833); and Triticum multiflorum (described from Aotearoa/New Zealand specimens from Mercury Bay in 1853).[7] In 1854, Triticum kingiana was moved into Festuca, then in 1915, both taxa were moved into Agropyron before being moved again into Elymus in 1982.[3][7]

In 1990, Connor recognised that the Phillip Island taxon, then called Elymus kingiana, was similar to the then Elymus multiflorus, and was moved to the varietal rank of Elymus multiflorus var. kingianus.[15] In 1994, Connor clarified that while the two taxa were the same species, E. multiflorus var. kingianus was distinct from the Australian and Aotearoa/New Zealand plants on the basis that it has many prickle-teeth on the lemmas and glumes of its spikelets, and tends to have longer awns.[11] In 2005, de Lange et al. determined that a subspecies rank was more appropriate for the Phillip Island taxon, and elevated it to Elymus multiflorus subsp. kingianus.[16]

In 2011, genetic analysis showed that the Australasian Elymus were distinct from Elymus elsewhere, and were moved into the resurrected genus Anthosachne. The two taxa were named Anthosachne multiflora subsp. kingiana and Anthosachne multiflora subsp. multiflora.[7] Finally, in 2014, a mistake was noticed by Govaerts, which had been made by Connor in 1990 while reducing the Phillip Island taxon to the varietal rank.[3][15] Connor had mistakenly identified the basionym Tricitum kingianum as having been described in 1883 rather than 1833, leading to Triticum multiflorum being incorrectly prioritised as the oldest name. Thus, Govaerts created the new combinations Anthosachne kingiana subsp. multiflorum for the Aotearoa/New Zealand and Australian taxon, and Anthosachne kingiana subsp. kingiana for the Phillip Island taxon.

Anthosachne fertilis, while recognised as a distinct by the Australian Plant Census, is recognised by Plants of the World Online and The World Checklist of Vascular Plants as a synonym of Anthosachne kingiana subsp. multiflora.

Anthosachne kingiana inflorescence
Glaucous, short-awned inflorescence

References

  1. ^ Lange, Peter J. de; Rolfe, Jeremy R.; Barkla, John W.; Courtney, Shannel P.; Champion, Paul D.; Perrie, Leon R.; Beadel, Sarah M.; Ford, Kerry A.; Breitwieser, Ilse; Schönberger, Ines; Hindmarsh-Walls, Rowan (May 2018). "Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2017" (PDF). New Zealand Threat Classification Series. 22: 1–86. OCLC 1041649797. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-09-04. Retrieved 2025-08-02.
  2. ^ "Anthosachne kingiana (Endl.) Govaerts subsp. kingiana". Biota of New Zealand - Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research. Archived from the original on 1 August 2025. Retrieved 1 August 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d e Govaerts, R. (2014). "New Combinations for the Phillip Island wheat grass Anthosachne kingiana subsp. kingiana (Poaceae)". Journal of the Adelaide Botanical Gardens (27): 23–24.
  4. ^ "Anthosachne kingiana subsp. multiflora (Banks & Sol. ex Hook.f.) Govaerts". Biota of New Zealand - Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research. Archived from the original on 3 August 2025. Retrieved 2 August 2025.
  5. ^ a b c "Elymus multiflorus (Banks & Sol. ex Hook.f.) Á.Löve & Connor var. multiflorus". Floraseries Landcare Research. 1994. Archived from the original on 2 August 2025. Retrieved 2 August 2025.
  6. ^ de Lange, Peter (2 August 2025). "Anthosachne kingiana subsp. multiflora". NZPCN. Archived from the original on 25 March 2025. Retrieved 2 August 2025.
  7. ^ a b c d e Barkworth, M (2011-02-16). "The Triticeae (Gramineae) in Australasia". Telopea. 1–2: 37–56. Bibcode:2011Telop...1...37B. doi:10.7751/telopea20116003.
  8. ^ "Anthosachne fertilis (S.Wang ex S.W.L.Jacobs & Barkworth) Barkworth & S.W.L.Jacobs". Australian Plant Name Index. 5 August 2025. Archived from the original on 8 December 2023. Retrieved 5 August 2025.
  9. ^ Govaerts, Rafaël; Nic Lughadha, Eimear; Black, Nicholas; Turner, Robert; Paton, Alan (2021-08-13). "The World Checklist of Vascular Plants, a continuously updated resource for exploring global plant diversity". Scientific Data. 8 (1): 215. Bibcode:2021NatSD...8..215G. doi:10.1038/s41597-021-00997-6. ISSN 2052-4463. PMC 8363670. PMID 34389730.
  10. ^ "Anthosachne fertilis (S.Wang ex S.W.L.Jacobs & Barkworth) Barkworth & S.W.L.Jacobs". Plants of the World Online. 4 August 2025. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
  11. ^ a b Connor, H. E. (1994-04-01). "Indigenous New Zealand Triticeae: Gramineae". New Zealand Journal of Botany. 32 (2): 125–154. Bibcode:1994NZJB...32..125C. doi:10.1080/0028825X.1994.10410364. ISSN 0028-825X.
  12. ^ De Lange, Peter James; Gosden, Jane; Shannel P. Courtney; Fergus, Alexander J.; Barkla, John; Beadel, Sarah M.; Champion, Paul D.; Hindmarsh-Walls, Rowan; Makan, Troy; Michel, Pascale (2024). "Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023". New Zealand Threat Classification Series (43). doi:10.13140/RG.2.2.11940.49288.
  13. ^ a b Green, P.S. (1994). Flora of Australia, vol. 49. Australian Government Publishing Service: Canberra). pp. 469–470. ISBN 978-0-644-29385-3.
  14. ^ a b "Elymus multiflorus subsp. kingianus - critically endangered species listing". Environment New South Wales. 24 September 2010. Archived from the original on 20 April 2025. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
  15. ^ a b Connor, H. E. (1990). "Elymus (Gramineae) on Norfolk Island". Kew Bulletin. 45 (4): 680. Bibcode:1990KewBu..45..680C. doi:10.2307/4113875. ISSN 0075-5974. JSTOR 4113875.
  16. ^ de Lange, P. J.; Gardner, R. O.; Sykes, W. R.; Crowcroft, G. M.; Cameron, E. K.; Stalker, F.; Christian, M. L.; Braggins, J. E. (2005-01-01). "Vascular flora of Norfolk Island: Some additions and taxonomic notes". New Zealand Journal of Botany. 43 (2): 563–596. Bibcode:2005NZJB...43..563D. doi:10.1080/0028825X.2005.9512975. ISSN 0028-825X.
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