Gahnia filum
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| Chaffy Saw-sedge. | ||||||||||||||
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 Gahnia filum at Cherry Lake Altona, Victoria
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| Gahnia filum (Labill.) F.Muell. [1] |
Gahnia filum (Chaffy Saw-sedge) is a tussock-forming perennial in the family Cyperaceae, endemic to Australia. It grows to between 60 and 110 cm in height.[2]
The species occurs in coastal saltmarsh in the states of New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia.[2] [3]
The caterpillar of the Altona Skipper butterfly uses this species for shelter during daylight hours, binding the leaves with silk. By night it feeds on the grass.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ Gahnia filum. Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government.
- ^ a b New South Wales Flora Online: Gahnia filum by K.L. Wilson, Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust, Sydney, Australia
- ^ Gahnia filum (Labill.) F.Muell.. Electronic Flora of South Australia Fact Sheet. State Herbarium of South Australia.
- ^ Herbison-Evans, Don. Hesperilla flavescens. Caterpillars: especially Australian ones. Retrieved on 2008-05-03.
