Pharoideae

Basal lineages. -- The early history of the use of
molecular techniques to investigate grass phylogeny is well documented
(summary in Simon, 2007b). Prior to this work (Stebbins 1956; Watson et
al. 1985; Clayton & Renvoize 1986; Watson & Dallwitz 1992) the
subfamily Bambusoideae was circumscribed to either include or it was
placed near to some genera that are today conventionally called “basal
lineages” of the Poaceae; they include three small subfamilies
Anomochlooideae (Anomochloa Brongn. and Steptochaeta Schrad. ex Nees), Puelioideae (Guaduella Franch. and Puelia Franch.) and Pharoideae (Pharus P.Browne, Leptaspis R.Br. and Scrotochloa Judz. ).

When
this group of three subfamilies was first investigated, together with a
wide sampling of the whole family (Clark et al 1995), it became clear
that they were phylogenetically basal to all other grasses, even though
no morphological synapomorphies were detected. This was followed by a
formal recognition of the subfamily Anomochlooideae, with the tribes
Anomochloeae and Streptochaeteae, and the subfamily Pharoideae (Clark
& Judziewicz 1996); later, when the genera Puelia and Guaduella
were added to the analysis and found to form a separate basal clade
from the other two subfamilies, they were formerly described as
subfamily Puelioideae (Clark et al. 2000).

Leptaspis
Pharus
Scrotochloa


Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith