Cymbopogon refractus

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Family Poaceae

Taxonomy: Cymbopogon refractus (R.Br.) A.Camus

Synonyms: 11 (APC 2026-07-30)

Anatherum refractum (R.Br.) P.Beauv. (nomenclatural synonym)
Andropogon refractus R.Br. (nomenclatural synonym)
Andropogon refractus R.Br. f. refractus (nomenclatural synonym)
Andropogon refractus R.Br. var. refractus (nomenclatural synonym)
Andropogon refractus f. euryphyllus Domin (taxonomic synonym)
Andropogon refractus var. luxurians Domin (taxonomic synonym)
Andropogon refractus var. tropicus Domin (taxonomic synonym)
Andropogon refractus var. typicus Domin (taxonomic synonym)
Andropogon tahitensis Hook. & Arn. (taxonomic synonym)
Cymbopogon nardus subvar. refractus (R.Br.) Roberty (nomenclatural synonym)
Sorgum refractum (R.Br.) Kuntze (nomenclatural synonym)

Distribution (APC): NT, Qld, NSW, NI, ACT, Vic

Profiles: APC, Flora of Australia, ALA, iNaturalist, NSW Flora, NT eFlora, Vic Flora, ATRP

Traits

Top source datasets: ATRP_2020 (2), Carey_2003 (3), Cheal_2017 (6), Draper_2023 (3), GrassBase_2014 (7), Hughes_1992 (3), Kew_2019_1 (3), Kew_2019_5 (1), Kew_2019_6 (3), Kubiak_2009 (4), Metcalfe_2020_2 (16), Moore_2019_2 (55), NHNSW_2014 (1), NHNSW_2014_2 (1), NHNSW_2022 (4), NHNSW_2023 (6), NSWFRD_2014 (10), Osborne_2014 (1), RBGV_2022 (3), RBGV_2023 (8), Schmidt_2010 (131), Simpson_2021 (3), Sjostrom_2006 (4), Soliveres_2012 (3), Wenk_2022 (2), Wenk_2023 (1), White_2020 (18). See below for a full list of sources.
Summary: AusTraits contains 73 traits from 302 records in 27 datasets.

Traits by category (click to expand). For categorical traits, the values are listed. For numerical traits, the mean and range are shown.

fire response

resprouting_capacity (categorical): partial_resprouting (15); resprouts (8) [sources: Carey_2003; Cheal_2017; Kubiak_2009; Moore_2019_2; NSWFRD_2014; Simpson_2021]
post_fire_recruitment (categorical): post_fire_recruitment_absent (2) [sources: Carey_2003; Cheal_2017]
fire_time_from_fire_to_flowering (numerical): 3.6 mo (3.6-3.6 mo) [sources: NSWFRD_2014]

flower morphology

sex_type (categorical): andromonoecious (1); hermaphrodite (1) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2; Sjostrom_2006]

fruit morphology

fruit_length (numerical): 2.5 mm (2.5-2.5 mm) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2]
fruit_type (categorical): caryopsis (4) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023; Sjostrom_2006]
fruit_fleshiness (categorical): dry (2) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2; Sjostrom_2006]
fruit_dehiscence (categorical): dehiscent (1); indehiscent (2) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2; Sjostrom_2006]

leaf morphology

leaf_area (numerical): 1153.64 mm2 (375-2180.07 mm2) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2; Moore_2019_2]
leaf_length (numerical): 375 mm (100-500 mm) [sources: GrassBase_2014; RBGV_2023]
leaf_width (numerical): 2.38 mm (1-4 mm) [sources: GrassBase_2014; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023]
leaf_dry_mass (numerical): 346.67 mg (307-423 mg) [sources: Moore_2019_2]
leaf_mass_per_area (numerical): 178.51 g/m2 (168.63-194.17 g/m2) [sources: Moore_2019_2]
leaf_dry_matter_content (numerical): 0.35 g/g (0.29-0.38 g/g) [sources: Moore_2019_2]
leaf_compoundness (categorical): simple (1) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2]
leaf_lamina_posture (categorical): flat (1) [sources: RBGV_2023]
leaf_glaucousness (categorical): glaucous (1); not_glaucous (1) [sources: RBGV_2023]
leaf_phyllotaxis (categorical): alternate (2) [sources: NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023]
plant_photosynthetic_organ (categorical): leaf (2) [sources: NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023]

life history

photosynthetic_pathway (categorical): c4 (5) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2; Moore_2019_2; Osborne_2014; Schmidt_2010; White_2020]
plant_growth_form (categorical): graminoid (5); herb (3); tussock (3) [sources: Hughes_1992; Metcalfe_2020_2; NHNSW_2022; NSWFRD_2014; RBGV_2022; Schmidt_2010; Soliveres_2012; Wenk_2022; White_2020]
life_form (categorical): hemicryptophyte (1) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2]
life_history (categorical): perennial (6); short_lived_perennial (1) [sources: ATRP_2020; Cheal_2017; Moore_2019_2; NHNSW_2022; RBGV_2022; Simpson_2021; Wenk_2023]
woodiness_detailed (categorical): herbaceous (3) [sources: NHNSW_2022; RBGV_2022; Wenk_2022]
stem_growth_habit (categorical): caespitose (1); tufted (2) [sources: ATRP_2020; Moore_2019_2; NHNSW_2022]
leaf_phenology (categorical): evergreen (1) [sources: Schmidt_2010]
nitrogen_fixing (categorical): non_nitrogen_fixer (2) [sources: Schmidt_2010; White_2020]
root_structure (categorical): non_mycorrhizal (1) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2]
parasitic (categorical): not_parasitic (1) [sources: White_2020]
pollination_syndrome (categorical): abiotic (1); wind (2) [sources: Draper_2023; Metcalfe_2020_2; White_2020]
dispersal_syndrome (categorical): anemochory (2); epizoochory (3); myrmecochory (1); zoochory (1) [sources: Draper_2023; Kew_2019_5; Metcalfe_2020_2; NSWFRD_2014; Soliveres_2012; White_2020]
dispersers (categorical): ants (1); mammals (1); wind (2) [sources: Draper_2023; NSWFRD_2014; Soliveres_2012; White_2020]
flowering_time (categorical): yynnnnnnyyyy (1); yyyyynnnyyyy (2); yyyyyyyyyyyy (2) [sources: Hughes_1992; NHNSW_2014; NHNSW_2014_2; NSWFRD_2014; White_2020]
seedbank_location (categorical): soil_seedbank (1) [sources: NSWFRD_2014]
seedbank_longevity_class (categorical): persistent (1); transient (1) [sources: NSWFRD_2014; White_2020]
vegetative_reproduction_ability (categorical): not_vegetative (2) [sources: Metcalfe_2020_2; White_2020]
bud_bank_location (categorical): basal_buds (1); bud-bearing_root (1); root_crown (1) [sources: Carey_2003; Moore_2019_2; Simpson_2021]

nutrient and stable isotope

leaf_N_per_dry_mass (numerical): 9.36 mg/g (7.5-12.24 mg/g) [sources: Schmidt_2010]
leaf_P_per_dry_mass (numerical): 0.85 mg/g (0.67-1.06 mg/g) [sources: Schmidt_2010]
leaf_delta13C (numerical): -12.5 {delta}[ppth] (-13.08--11.86 {delta}[ppth]) [sources: Schmidt_2010]

seed morphology

seed_dry_mass (numerical): 0.74 mg (0.67-0.82 mg) [sources: Kew_2019_1; Metcalfe_2020_2]
seed_length (numerical): 2.5 mm (2.5-2.5 mm) [sources: GrassBase_2014]

whole plant morphology

plant_height (numerical): 0.84 m (0.25-1.5 m) [sources: GrassBase_2014; Hughes_1992; NHNSW_2023; RBGV_2023]
plant_physical_defence_structures (categorical): absent (1) [sources: White_2020]

Sources

dataset_id	n_traits	n_records	reference
Schmidt_2010	20	131	S. Schmidt, R. E. Lamble, R. J. Fensham, and I. Siddique. “Effect of woody vegetation clearing on nutrient and carbon relations of semi-arid dystrophic savanna”. Plant and Soil 331.1-2 (2009), pp. 79-90. doi: 10.1007/s11104-009-0233-5.
Moore_2019_2	12	55	N. A. Moore, J. S. Camac, and J. W. Morgan. “Effects of drought and fire on resprouting capacity of 52 temperate Australian perennial native grasses”. New Phytologist 221.3 (2018), pp. 1424-1433. doi: 10.1111/nph.15480.
White_2020	18	18	M. White, S. Sinclair, and D. Frood. Victorian Vital Attributes Database. database. Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victoria, 2020.
Metcalfe_2020_2	16	16	D. Metcalfe. “Unpublished data: Traits of Poaceae spp, CSIRO”. 2020.
NSWFRD_2014	10	10	B. Kenny, C. Orscheg, E. Tasker, M. A. Gill, and R. Bradstock. NSW Flora Fire Response Database, v2.1. database. NSW Department of Planning Industry and Environment, 2014.
RBGV_2023	8	8	VicFlora. Flora of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2023. url: https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/.
GrassBase_2014	4	7	W. Clayton, M. Vorontsova, and K. H. &. H. Williamson. GrassBase - The online world grass flora. 2006. url: http://www.kew.org/data/grasses-db.html.
Cheal_2017	6	6	D. Cheal. Growth stages and tolerable fire intervals for Victoria's native vegetation data sets. Fire and adaptive management, report no. 84. Victorian Government Department of Sustainability and Environment Melbourne, 2010.
NHNSW_2023	5	6	N. H. of New South Wales. The Plant Information Network System of The Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust Version 2.0.. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2023. url: https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
Kubiak_2009	3	4	P. J. Kubiak. “Fire responses of bushland plants after the January 1994 wildfires in northern Sydney”. Cunninghamia 11.1 (2009), pp. 131-165.
NHNSW_2022	4	4	N. H. of New South Wales. The Plant Information Network System of The Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust Version 2.0.. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
Sjostrom_2006	4	4	A. Sjöström and C. L. Gross. “Life-history characters and phylogeny are correlated with extinction risk in the Australian angiosperms”. Journal of Biogeography 33.2 (2006), pp. 271-290. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2699.2005.01393.x.
Carey_2003	3	3	A. C. &. M. E. &. P. H. &. M. L. &. T. M. &. P. O. &. S. S. &. D. S. &. N. Webb. Wildfires in the ACT 2003: Report on Initial Impacts on Natural Ecosystems. Technical Report No. 17. Environment ACT, 2003. url: https://www.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/2539593/17-wildfires-in-the-act-report-on-initial-impacts-on-natural-ecosystems-2003.pdf.
Draper_2023	3	3	J. T. Draper, S. Delean, J. G. Conran, P. Weinstein, and B. S. Simpson. “Life-history characteristics and climate correlates of dioecious plant species in central southern Australia”. Australian Journal of Botany unknown.unknown (2023), p. unknown. doi: 10.1071/BT22110.
Hughes_1992	3	3	L. Hughes and B. Rice. “Unpublished data: Traits data for 643 species, Macquarie University”. 1992.
Kew_2019_1	1	3	Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Seed Information Database (SID) and Seed Bank Database. 2019. url: http://data.kew.org/sid/.
Kew_2019_6	1	3	Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Germination data from the Seed Information Database (SID) and Seed Bank Database. 2019. url: http://data.kew.org/sid/.
RBGV_2022	3	3	VicFlora. Flora of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. accessed on 6 May, 2022.. 2022. url: https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/.
Simpson_2021	3	3	K. J. Simpson, E. C. Jardine, S. Archibald, E. J. Forrestel, C. E. R. Lehmann, G. H. Thomas, and C. P. Osborne. “Resprouting grasses are associated with less frequent fire than seeders”. New Phytologist 230 (2021), pp. 832-844. doi: 10.1111/nph.17069.
Soliveres_2012	3	3	S. Soliveres, D. J. Eldridge, F. Hemmings, and F. T. Maestre. “Nurse plant effects on plant species richness in drylands: The role of grazing, rainfall and species specificity”. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 14 (2012), pp. 402-410. doi: 10.1016/j.ppees.2012.09.003.
ATRP_2020	2	2	F. A. Zich, B. P. Hyland, T. Whiffin, and R. A. Kerrigan. Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants, Edition 8. 2020. url: https://apps.lucidcentral.org/rainforest/text/intro/index.html.
Wenk_2022	2	2	E. Wenk. “Unpublished data: Australian plant growth forms dataset”. 2022.
Kew_2019_5	1	1	Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Seed dispersal data from the Seed Information Database (SID) and Seed Bank Database. 2019. url: http://data.kew.org/sid/.
NHNSW_2014	1	1	Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney. PLantNET. 2014. url: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/search/simple.htm.
NHNSW_2014_2	1	1	Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney. PLantNET: NSW flora online. 2014. url: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/.
Osborne_2014	1	1	C. Osborne, A. Salomaa, T. Kluyver, V. Visser, E. Kellogg, O. Morrone, M. Vorontsova, W. Clayton, and D. Simpson. “A global database of C4 photosynthesis in grasses”. New Phytologist 204 (2014), pp. 441-446. doi: 10.1111/nph.12942.
Wenk_2023	1	1	E. Wenk. “Unpublished data: Australian plant life history dataset, University of New South Wales, Sydney”. 2023.