Paraneurachne Contr. Queensland Herb. 13: 20 (1972).
Derivation:. From Greek para (like) and the genus Neurachne.
Taxonomic revisions, nomenclatural references:. S.T.Blake, Contr. Queensland Herb.13: 20–24 (1972).
Key references (keys and floras):. M.Lazarides, Flora of Central Australia 486 (1981); J.C.Tothill and J.B.Hacker, Grasses Southern Qld 326–327 (1983); J.P.Jessop, Flora of South Australia 4: 1982–1983 (1986); T.D.Macfarlane, Flora of the Kimberley Region 1199 (1992); B.K.Simon, Key to Australian Grasses 138 (1993); D.Sharp and B.K.Simon, AusGrass (2002); J.P.Jessop, Grasses of South Australia 502 (2006).
W.D.Clayton & S.A.Renvoize, Genera Graminum (1986), genus (446).
Native, endemic. 1 species, from arid Australia. WA, NT, SA, and Qld.
Habit. Perennial, stoloniferous or tufted or decumbent. Culms wiry. Leaf blades narrow. Ligule a fringe of hairs.
Inflorescence. Inflorescence a single raceme (spike-like), a single raceme or spike, the racemes contracted, the spikelets spiralled.
Spikelets. Spikelets dorsally compressed, 2 flowered, with 1 fertile floret, solitary, pedicelled (the pedicels short, persistent). Fertile spikelets with lower incomplete floret(s), lanceolate, abaxial (with lower glume on side away from rachis), falling with glumes.
Glumes. Glumes more or less equal, long relative to adjacent lemmas, hairy (with dense white hairs), pointed (subulate-acuminate), awned (acuminate into the short subule) or awnless (acuminate, hardly truly awned), non-keeled, dissimilar (lower membranous, flat on back, not bearded. Upper convex and hardened towards the base, with a dense narrow beard of long white submarginal hairs on each side below). Lower glume two-keeled (above), 5–7 nerved. Upper glume 11–13 nerved.
Florets. Lower incomplete floret(s) male. Lemmas gibbous below, awnless, 7 nerved, exceeded by fertile lemmas to exceeding fertile lemmas. Fertile florets 1. Lemmas similar in texture to glumes, smooth to striate, not becoming indurated (upper lemma thinly rigid), yellow in fruit, entire at apex, pointed, muticous, with a clear germination flap, 3–7 nerved, hairy or glabrous, having flat margins not tucked into palea. Palea relatively long, apically notched, textured like lemma, indurated, 2 nerved. Lodicules 2. Stamens 3. Grain small, compressed dorsiventrally. Hilum short. Embryo large.
Kranz Anatomy. C4, biochemical type NADP-ME.
2n = 36, 4 ploid.
Habitat. Xerophytic. Dry grassland. Species of open habitats.
Classification. Panicoideae; Neurachneae.
Notes. Neurachne, Paraneurachne and Thyridolepis are traditionally placed in an endemic Australian tribe the Neurachneae (Blake 1972). However recent cladistic work on morphological characters (Zuolaga, Morrone and Giussani, 2000) reveal that Neuracheae is not monopyletic, and the three genera are placed widely among the Paniceae (B.K.Simon).
Types Species. P. muelleri (Hack.) S.T.Blake.
Biogeographic Element. Clifford & Simon 1981, Simon & Jacobs 1990: Endemic.