Hyparrhenia variabilis and Hyparrhenia cymbaria (Poaceae): New for the Americas, Successful in Mexico.
Resource type
Journal article
Date published
June 2014
Abstract
(boat thatching grass, ipopo grass) and (no common name), robust African savanna grasses with complex taxonomies, have not yet been reported for the Americas. Large populations were found in central Jalisco, northeastern Michoacán, and Morelos, Mexico. The species grow in maize and sorghum fields as well as on roadsides and in old fields, but always in association with present or past sorghum cultivation; this suggests introduction through contaminated seed material from Africa. Because of the size and density of the populations, and their native ecology, they are both agricultural pests as well as a potentially dangerous invaders for the American (sub)tropical grasslands and native scrublands, including the southern United States. The invasion underlines the importance of effective phytosanitary controls of the seed supply.
Journal title
Invasive Plant Science and Management
Volume
7
Issue
2
Publisher
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Place of publication
Cambridge, UK
ISSN
1939-7291
eISSN
1939-747X
Official URL
Rights statement
In Copyright