''Uncinia'' is a genus of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
s in the family
Cyperaceae, known as hook-sedges in
Australia and as hook grasses or bastard grasses in New Zealand. The genus is characterised by the presence of a long hook formed by an extension of the
rachilla,
which is used to attach the fruit to passing animals (
epizoochory
In Spermatophyte plants, seed dispersal is the movement, spread or transport of seeds away from the parent plant.
Plants have limited mobility and rely upon a variety of dispersal vectors to transport their seeds, including both abiotic vectors, ...
), especially birds,
and it is this feature which gives the genus its name, from the
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
''uncinus'', meaning a hook or barb.
Systematics
''Uncinia'' is a "satellite genus" of the very large genus ''
Carex
''Carex'' is a vast genus of more than 2,000 species of grass-like plants in the family Cyperaceae, commonly known as sedges (or seg, in older books). Other members of the family Cyperaceae are also called sedges, however those of genus ''Carex'' ...
'', alongside other satellites such as ''
Cymophyllus'', ''
Kobresia
''Kobresia'' is a genus of plants in the sedge family. They are sometimes called bog sedges. These perennial sedges are quite similar to ''Carex'' species in appearance. The genus is widespread across much of Europe, Asia and North America, with ...
'', ''
Schoenoxiphium'', ''
Vesicarex''. ''Uncinia'' seems to form a
monophyletic group
A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...
, with the most distinct species being ''
U. kingii'', a species which has sometimes been placed in the genus ''Carex''.
Similarly, ''
Carex microglochin'' has sometimes been included in ''Uncinia'', as ''U. microglochin''.
Distribution
''Uncinia'' has a
Gondwanan distribution,
with most species found
Australia, New Zealand and
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
,
as far north as
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
and
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
.
Of the 50–60 species, 30 are
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
to New Zealand,
6 are endemic to the east coast of Australia,
and 4 are endemic to the
Juan Fernández Islands
The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic i ...
.
Smaller numbers of species are also found in
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
,
Borneo
Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...
, the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
,
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
,
Tristan da Cunha
Tristan da Cunha (), colloquially Tristan, is a remote group of volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying approximately from Cape Town in South Africa, from Saint Helena a ...
,
Kerguelen
The Kerguelen Islands ( or ; in French commonly ' but officially ', ), also known as the Desolation Islands (' in French), are a group of islands in the sub-Antarctic constituting one of the two exposed parts of the Kerguelen Plateau, a large ...
,
Île Amsterdam
Île Amsterdam (), also known as Amsterdam Island and New Amsterdam (''Nouvelle-Amsterdam''), is an island of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the southern Indian Ocean that together with neighbouring Île Saint-Paul to the south f ...
,
Île Saint-Paul
Île Saint-Paul (Saint Paul Island) is an island forming part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (''Terres australes et antarctiques françaises'', TAAF) in the Indian Ocean, with an area of . The island is located about south of the la ...
, and the
Prince Edward Islands
The Prince Edward Islands are two small uninhabited islands in the sub-Antarctic Indian Ocean that are part of South Africa. The islands are named Marion Island (named after Marc-Joseph Marion du Fresne, 1724–1772) and Prince Edward Island ...
, although none are known from the mainland of
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
.
This distribution suggests that the genus had an origin in
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...
.
It contains the following species:
*''
Uncinia affinis''
(C. B. Clarke) Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia andina''
G. A. Wheeler –
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
*''
Uncinia angustifolia''
Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia araucana''
G. A. Wheeler –
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
*''
Uncinia aspericaulis''
G. A. Wheeler –
Juan Fernández Islands
The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic i ...
*''
Uncinia astonii''
Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia aucklandica''
Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia austroamericana''
G. A. Wheeler –
Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of the Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla ...
*''
Uncinia banksii''
Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia bracteosa''
Phil. –
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
*''
Uncinia brevicaulis''
Thouars –
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
,
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
,
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouze ...
,
Tristan da Cunha
Tristan da Cunha (), colloquially Tristan, is a remote group of volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying approximately from Cape Town in South Africa, from Saint Helena a ...
,
Juan Fernández Islands
The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic i ...
*''
Uncinia caespitosa''
Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia chilensis''
G. A. Wheeler –
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
*''
Uncinia clavata''
(Kük.) Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia compacta''
R. Br. –
Australia
*''
Uncinia costata''
Kük. –
Juan Fernández Islands
The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic i ...
*''
Uncinia dawsonii''
Hamlin –
New Caledonia
*''
Uncinia debilior''
F. Muell. –
Lord Howe Island
Lord Howe Island (; formerly Lord Howe's Island) is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, part of the Australian state of New South Wales. It lies directly east of mainland P ...
*''
Uncinia dikei
''Uncinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cyperaceae, known as hook-sedges in Australia and as hook grasses or bastard grasses in New Zealand. The genus is characterised by the presence of a long hook formed by an extension of th ...
''
Nelmes –
Marion Island
*''
Uncinia distans''
Col. ex Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia divaricata''
Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia douglasii
''Uncinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cyperaceae, known as hook-sedges in Australia and as hook grasses or bastard grasses in New Zealand. The genus is characterised by the presence of a long hook formed by an extension of the ...
''
Boott –
Juan Fernández Islands
The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic i ...
*''
Uncinia drucei''
Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia ecuadorensis''
G. A. Wheeler & Goetgh. –
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...
*''
Uncinia egmontiana''
Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia elegans''
(Kük.) Hamlin – New Zealand,
Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
*''
Uncinia erinacea''
Pers. –
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
*''
Uncinia ferruginea''
Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia filiformis''
Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia flaccida''
S. T. Blake –
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
(
Australia)
*''
Uncinia fuscovaginata''
Kük. – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia gracilenta''
Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia hamata''
(Sw.) Urb. –
Neotropics
The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone.
Definition
In bioge ...
*''
Uncinia hookeri''
Boott –
New Zealand's
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country b ...
subantarctic islands,
Macquarie Island
Macquarie Island is an island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, about halfway between New Zealand and Antarctica. Regionally part of Oceania and politically a part of Tasmania, Australia, since 1900, it became a Tasmanian State Reserve in 197 ...
*''
Uncinia involuta''
Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia kingii
''Uncinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cyperaceae, known as hook-sedges in Australia and as hook grasses or bastard grasses in New Zealand. The genus is characterised by the presence of a long hook formed by an extension of th ...
''
R.Br. ''ex'' Boott –
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
*''
Uncinia koyamai''
Gómez-Laur. –
Costa Rica
*''
Uncinia lacustris''
G. A. Wheeler –
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...
*''
Uncinia laxiflora
''Carex erythrovaginata'', the lax bastard grass, is a species of flowering plant in the family Cyperaceae, native to New Zealand. A stout tussock-former reaching , its dark green leaves are strongly scabrid.
References
Carex, erythrovag ...
''
Petrie – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia lechleriana''
Steud. –
Magellan Region
*''
Uncinia leptostachya''
Raoul – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia loliacea''
Phil. –
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
*''
Uncinia longifructus''
(Kük.) Petrie – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia macloviformis''
G. A. Wheeler –
Juan Fernández Islands
The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic i ...
*''
Uncinia macrophylla''
Steud. –
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
*''
Uncinia macrotricha''
Franch. –
Patagonia
Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and g ...
*''
Uncinia meridensis''
Steyerm. –
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
*''
Uncinia multifaria''
Nees ''ex'' Boott –
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
*''
Uncinia multifolia''
Boeckeler –
Colombia
*''
Uncinia negeri''
Kük. –
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
*''
Uncinia nemoralis''
K. L. Wilson –
Australia
*''
Uncinia nervosa''
Boott – New Zealand,
Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
*''
Uncinia obtusifolia''
Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia ohwiana''
Koyama –
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
*''
Uncinia paludosa''
G. A. Wheeler & Goetgh. –
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...
*''
Uncinia perplexa''
Boott –
Surville Cliffs (New Zealand)
*''
Uncinia phleoides''
(Cav.) Pers. –
Juan Fernández Islands
The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic i ...
,
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
*''
Uncinia purpurata''
Petrie – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia rapaensis''
H. St. John –
Tubuai
Tubuai or Tupuai is the main island of the Austral Island group, located south of Tahiti. In addition to Tubuai, the group of islands include Rimatara, Rurutu, Raivavae, Rapa and the uninhabited Îles Maria. They are part of the Austral Isla ...
*''
Uncinia rubra''
Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia rupestris
''Uncinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cyperaceae, known as hook-sedges in Australia and as hook grasses or bastard grasses in New Zealand. The genus is characterised by the presence of a long hook formed by an extension of th ...
''
Raoul – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia scabra''
Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia scabriuscula''
G. A. Wheeler –
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
,
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
*''
Uncinia sclerophylla''
Nelmes –
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
*''
Uncinia silvestris''
Hamlin – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia sinclairii''
Boott – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia smithii''
Phil. –
South Georgia,
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouze ...
*''
Uncinia strictissima''
Petrie – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia subsacculata''
G. A. Wheeler & Goetgh. –
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...
*''
Uncinia subtrigona''
Nelmes –
Borneo
Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...
,
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
*''
Uncinia sulcata''
K. L. Wilson –
Australia
*''
Uncinia tenella''
R. Br. –
Australia
*''
Uncinia tenuifolia''
G. A. Wheeler & Goetgh. –
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...
*''
Uncinia tenuis''
Poeppig ''ex'' Kunth –
Juan Fernández Islands
The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic i ...
,
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
*''
Uncinia uncinata''
(L. f.) Kük. – New Zealand,
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
*''
Uncinia viridis''
(C. B. Clarke) Edgar – New Zealand
*''
Uncinia zotovii''
Hamlin – New Zealand
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q7882664
Cyperaceae genera
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot