Bromus bromoideus, the brome of the Ardennes, is a species of grass in the genus Bromus. Genetic studies suggest that it rather should be regarded as a variant of Bromus secalinus.[3]

Bromus bromoideus
Inflorescence
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Pooideae
Genus: Bromus
Species:
B. bromoideus
Binomial name
Bromus bromoideus
Synonyms

Bromus arduennensis Dumort.
Bromus grossus subsp. eburonensis (Nyman) Tournay

It was found in the calcareous meadows of the provinces of Liège and Luxembourg in Belgium, notably around the towns of Rochefort, Beauraing and Comblain-au-Pont, where it was first discovered in 1821. It was thought to be extinct since the 1930s until preserved seeds were rediscovered in collections of the Belgian National Botanic Garden by English botanist David Aplin and as a result of the publicity, seeds in other locations came to light in 2005.[2][4]

In 2009 the National Botanic Garden of Belgium announced that some hundred thousand seeds have been germinated.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Gigot, G. (2013). Bromus bromoideus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.2
  2. ^ a b "EU project 'Ensconet' ensconces a once-lost Belgian grass". European research Headlines. European Commission. 2005-11-07. Retrieved 2007-03-20.
  3. ^ Ainouche & Bayer (1997). "On the origins of the tetraploid Bromus species (section Bromus, Poaceae): insights from internal transcribed spacer sequences of nuclear ribosomal DNA". Genome. 40 (5): 730–743. doi:10.1139/g97-796. PMID 9352648.
  4. ^ "'Kiss of Life' saves extinct grass: Belgian endemic back for birthday celebrations". innovations report. 2005-10-18.
  5. ^ Uitgestorven plant herleeft na zeventig jaar (Dutch).
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