''Schoenus'' is a predominately austral genus of sedges, commonly known as bogrushes, or veldrushes in South Africa. Species of this genus occur mainly in South Africa (some 44 species),

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

(some 70 species) and Southeast Asia. Others are found in scattered locations worldwide, from Europe (2 species) to Asia, North Africa (1 species) and the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

. Three species occur in the peatlands of southern South America, including '' S. antarcticus'' which is found in Tierra del Fuego, where it forms a component of hyperhumid

Magellanic moorland 250px, Magellanic moorland at Herschel Island, Cabo de Hornos National Park. The Magellanic moorland or Magellanic tundra ( es, Tundra magallánica) is an ecoregion on the Patagonian archipelagos south of latitude 48° S. It is characterized by h ...

. Taxonomic attention to the South African taxa, starting 2017, revealed a wealth of species. 24 species were transferred from ''

Tetraria ''Tetraria'' is a genus of flowering plants in the sedge family, Cyperaceae, native to Tanzania, South Africa, Borneo, Australia and New Zealand. The type species is '' Tetraria compar'' (L.) P.Beauv. Recent molecular work has shown that ''Tetr ...

'' and '' Epischoenus'' into ''Schoenus'', and several new species were described. '' S. inconspicuus'', discovered on the outskirts of Cape Town, consists of only a few specimens.

''Schoenus'' species

file:Flora Antarctica Plate CXLVII.jpg, Illustration of '' S. antarcticus'', native to Tierra del Fuego , the Plants of the World Online indicates there are 157 species of ''Schoenus''; however, this does not take into account several taxonomic changes made since 2020 (see sections below). Bogrushes Several of the species that are currently on the list provided by Plants of the World Online database as of November 2022 have recently been transferred to other genera based on molecular and morphological evidence: *'' Ammothryon grandiflorum'' (Nees ex Lehm.) R.L.Barrett, K.L.Wilson & J.J.Bruhl = synonym of ''

Schoenus grandiflorus Schoenus ( la, schœnus; grc-gre, σχοίνος, ''schoinos'', "rush rope"; egy, i͗trw, "river-measure") was an ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman unit of length and area based on the knotted cords first used in Egyptian surveying. Len ...

'' (Nees ex Lehm.) F.Muell. *''

Chaetospora curvifolia ''Schoenus'' is a predominately austral genus of sedges, commonly known as bogrushes, or veldrushes in South Africa. Species of this genus occur mainly in South Africa (some 44 species), Australia (some 70 species) and Southeast Asia. Others are ...

'' R.Br. = synonym of ''

Schoenus curvifolius Schoenus ( la, schœnus; grc-gre, σχοίνος, ''schoinos'', "rush rope"; egy, i͗trw, "river-measure") was an ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman unit of length and area based on the knotted cords first used in Egyptian surveying. Len ...

'' (R.Br.) Roem. & Schult. *'' Chaetospora subbulbosa'' (Benth.) K.L.Wilson & R.L.Barrett = synonym of ''

Schoenus subbulbosus Schoenus ( la, schœnus; grc-gre, σχοίνος, ''schoinos'', "rush rope"; egy, i͗trw, "river-measure") was an ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman unit of length and area based on the knotted cords first used in Egyptian surveying. Len ...

'' Benth. *'' Chaetospora turbinata'' R.Br. = synonym of ''

Schoenus turbinatus Schoenus ( la, schœnus; grc-gre, σχοίνος, ''schoinos'', "rush rope"; egy, i͗trw, "river-measure") was an ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman unit of length and area based on the knotted cords first used in Egyptian surveying. Len ...

'' (R.Br.) Roem. & Schult.

Southern African ''Schoenus''

The genus ''Schoenus'' includes 44 species from the southern Africa ''Schoenus'' clade, which are divided into three main groups. Veldrushes ''Schoenus cuspidatus'' group '' Schoenus graminifolius'' ''Epischoenus'' group Sselinae habit-NH-1

''Schoenus compar - Schoenus pictus'' group S megacarpus-inflorescence-Heiderland

Unplaced species Synonyms (yet to be incorporated in Plants of the World Online database) *''

Schoenus adnatus ''Schoenus adnatus'' is a species of sedge endemic to mountainous locations in southern regions of South Africa. Description ''Schoenus adnatus'' is a species of southern African '' Schoenus'' that shares traits characteristic of the ''Episch ...

'' (Levyns) T.L.Elliott & Muasya = synonym of ''

Schoenus tenuellus Schoenus ( la, schœnus; grc-gre, σχοίνος, ''schoinos'', "rush rope"; egy, i͗trw, "river-measure") was an ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman unit of length and area based on the knotted cords first used in Egyptian surveying. Leng ...

'' T.L.Elliott & Muasya

References

Cyperaceae genera Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Cyperaceae-stub