Leptochloa is a widespread genus of Asian, Australian, and American plants in the grass family.
Members of the genus are commonly known as sprangletops.
The generic name is derived from the Greek words leptos, meaning "thin," and chloa, meaning "grass," referring to the inflorescences.
Species
As of October 2024, Plants of the World Online accepted 14 species:
Leptochloa anisopoda (B.L.Rob.) P.M.Peterson
Leptochloa asthenes (Roem. & Schult.) C.E.Hubb. – Australia
Leptochloa barbata (Desv.) Nicora – Paraguay, Argentina
Leptochloa chloridiformis (Hack.) Parodi
Leptochloa crinita (Lag.) P.M.Peterson & N.Snow
Leptochloa digitata (R.Br.) Domin – Australia
Leptochloa exilis (Renvoize) P.M.Peterson
Leptochloa longa Griseb. – Panama, Trinidad
Leptochloa malayana (C.E.Hubb.) Jansen ex Veldkamp – Thailand, Borneo, Malaysia
Leptochloa monticola Chase – Hispaniola
Leptochloa mucronata (Michx.) Kunth – south-central USA, Mesoamerica, Bermuda, Trinidad, Netherlands Antilles, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, Galápagos
Leptochloa pluriflora (E.Fourn.) P.M.Peterson & N.Snow
Leptochloa tectoneticola (Backer) Jansen ex Veldkamp – Cambodia, Thailand, Java
Leptochloa virgata (L.) P.Beauv. – tropic sprangletop – from South Carolina to Paraguay
Species formerly placed in Leptochloa include:
(See Arundinella Acrachne Bouteloua Chloris Coelachyrum Cynodon Desmostachya Dinebra Diplachne Disakisperma Eleusine Enteropogon Eragrostis Gouinia Gymnopogon Leptocarydion Myriostachya Pogonarthria Rostraria Trichoneura Trigonochloa Tripogon.)
