Chorghe & al. • (2455) Conserve Andropogon caricosus TAXON 65 (4) • August 2016: 885–886 (2455) Proposal to conserve the name Andropogon caricosus (Dichanthium caricosum) (Poaceae) with a conserved type Alok R. Chorghe,1 Sangita Dey,2 Suman Halder3 & P.V. Prasanna2 1 Deccan Regional Centre, Botanical Survey of India, Hyderabad, Telengana –500048, India 2 Central National Herbarium, Botanical Survey of India, Howrah, West Bengal – 711103, India 3 Pharmacoepia Commission for Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy, Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh – 201002, India Author for correspondence: Suman Halder, sumanhalder94@gmail.com DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.12705/654.20 (2455) Andropogon caricosus L., Sp. Pl., ed. 2: 1480. Jul–Aug 1763 (Angiosp.: Gram.), nom. cons. prop. Typus: India, “Peninsula Ind. Orientalis”, Wight 1687 (K barcode K001050468, image!), typ. cons. prop. Dichanthium caricosum (L.) A. Camus (in Bull. Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat. 27: 549. 1921), a creeping stoloniferous perennial characterized by blue-tinged stems and terminal, subdigitate racemes belongs to the tribe Andropogoneae Dumort., subtribe Anthistiriinae J. Presl. (Soreng & al. in J. Syst. Evol. 53: 127. 2015). It is cosmopolitan in distribution and helps in controlling soil erosion. Due to its capability to provide good ground cover despite heavy grazing, it is a preferred forage grass in grazing pastures. Dichanthium caricosum is based on Andropogon caricosus L. Linnaeus (Sp. Pl., ed. 2: 1480. 1763) cited “Habitat in India” and a Rumphius plate, i.e., Herb. Amboin. 6: 17, t. 7, fig. 2A. 1750, in the protologue of A. caricosus. However, Linnaeus himself (Syst. Nat., ed. 10: 869. 1759) had earlier identified this plate as Saccharum spicatum L. (now a synonym of Perotis indica (L.) Kuntze). Munro (in J. Proc. Linn. Soc., Bot. 6: 53. 1862) equated Linnaeus’s description (1763) with Andropogon serratus Retz. (now a synonym of Dichanthium caricosum). Rumphius’s plate has been identified as Imperata cylindrica (L.) P. Beauv. by Merrill (Interpret. Rumph. Herb. Amb.: 85. 1917). Dichanthium Willemet is characterized by terminal, subdigitate racemes with awned spikelets. The diagnosis by Linnaeus (l.c. 1763), i.e., “spica solitaria imbricata, seminibus hirsutis, aristis nudis contortis” (Spike solitary with imbricate spikelets, seeds hairy, awn naked, contorted), goes well with Dichanthium as it has imbricate spikelets and long geniculate awn with twisted column. However, except for the solitary spike the other characters are not clear in the illustration by Rumphius and it seems the illustration can be of a Perotis, Imperata, Pennisetum, or Setaria species (Jarvis, Order out of Chaos: 290. 2007). Camus (l.c.) therefore rightly excluded Rumphius’s plate while transferring A. caricosus to Dichanthium. A thorough search for any specimen of A. caricosus proved futile as no specimen is found in the herbaria where the Linnaeus’s specimens were supposed to be deposited (H, L, LINN, OXF, SBT, S, UPS-BURSER, UPS-LINN). Judziewicz (in Goerts-Van-Rijn, Fl. Guianas, ser. A, 8: 168. 1990) mentioned some unseen Burman material as a probable type. But later he confirmed that although the type material was supposed to be in Geneva (G), he did not examine it (E.J. Judziewicz, pers. comm., 2015). The curator at G (L. Gautier, pers. comm., 2015) has indicated that no type material of A. caricosus is available at G. No type has been designated for A. caricosus to date (Jarvis, l.c.) and hence Art. 9.18 and 9.19 are not applicable. Although Rumphius’s plate is the only original material available for this name, selection of this as “lectotype” and simultaneously designating a modern specimen matching the current usage of this name as “epitype” (ICN Art. 9.8) would not be advisable since the epitype and the type it supported would differ taxonomically (ICN Art. 9.20). Therefore, the current proposal is necessary to maintain the established usage of Dichanthium caricosum. If the proposal is declined, then the name Version of Record 885 Chorghe & al. • (2455) Conserve Andropogon caricosus TAXON 65 (4) • August 2016: 885–886 Andropogon caricosus (≡ Dichanthium caricosum) would become a synonym of Imperata cylindrica, if Merrill’s (l.c.) interpretation of the Rumphius plate is correct. To preserve nomenclatural stability and to allow the continued use of this well-established name we have determined that Robert Wight’s collection (no. 1687 housed at K, K001050468) from Peninsular India is the right choice for the conserved type (ICN Art. 14.9) of the name A. caricosus as it perfectly fits the species to which the name is currently applied. It shows terminal subdigitate racemes with long-awned spikelets and also bears 886 a determinavit slip of C.E.C. Fischer and a handwritten note of C.E. Hubbard confirming its identity. Acknowledgements We thank the Director, Botanical Survey of India for facilities and the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change for financial support. We also acknowledge curators of all the mentioned herbaria and E. Judziewicz for information on the type specimen of Andropogon caricosus. Version of Record