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Sprangletop (Dinebra panicea)

Sprangletop has the potential to become widespread in Australia, where disturbed ground with seasonal moisture below 1,000 m may provide habitat. It is a weed of crops in other countries and is considered a threat to the viticulture industry.

Key facts

Type: Weed, grass.

Native to: Warm-temperate and tropical regions of the United States, Mexico, the West Indies, Central America and northern South America.

Established in: QLD.

Other names: Mucronate Sprangletop, Red Sprangletop.

Identification

  • A tufted annual grass with upright or branching, bent stems, 40–100 cm high.
  • Leaf sheaths are smooth to sparsely hairy, sometimes with long, fine hairs near the top; leaf blades are 5–45 cm long and 3–10 mm wide.
  • The branched flower cluster is 6–30 cm long, often reddish or purplish, and somewhat sticky.
  • Spikelets have 2–4 flowers; the broadly oblong seeds are reddish brown or brown and 0.7–0.8 mm long.
  • Look-alike: It resembles Leptochloa chinensis, but Sprangletop has scattered, long, fine tubercle-based hairs and fewer florets, with 2–4 per spikelet. It can also be distinguished from native Dinebra, Acrachne and Leptochloa species by its almost equal glumes, at least two well-developed florets per spikelet and papery leaf blades.

Where it grows

In Australia it is recorded in coastal Queensland, inland Queensland south of Townsville, and the East Kimberley in Western Australia, in places including wetlands, swamps, streams, waste places, rice fields, gardens and roadsides.

Why it matters

  • It is a weed of disturbed areas and crops, including rice, corn, cotton, soybeans, sugarcane, peanuts and pastures.
  • Seasonally moist disturbed ground below 1,000 m may provide potential habitat across much of Australia.
  • It is considered a threat to the viticulture industry.

How it spreads

  • Seeds are dispersed by water and animals.
  • Seeds can also spread as a contaminant of produce.
  • It is not known how or when the species arrived in Australia; it was first found in the Kimberley in Western Australia in 2000.

Control options

  • Some chemicals are licensed for Sprangletop control in cropping situations.
  • Consult the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority for chemical information.
  • No biological control agent is listed.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Seeds can spread by water, animals and as a contaminant of produce.
  • Inspect and clean vehicles, plant and footwear before leaving an infested area, paying attention to tyres, radiators, belly plates, tracks and floor mats.
  • Wash down at a designated bay where runoff is contained and can be monitored for seedlings.
  • Record each washdown so the client has evidence of clean entry and exit.

Classification by state

  • Australia (national): No national listing. Managed under state and territory law.
  • Queensland: Not prohibited or restricted. Not listed as prohibited or restricted matter in Queensland. Everyone must also take all reasonable and practical steps to minimise its risks (the general biosecurity obligation).
  • New South Wales: Not a priority weed. Not a state or regional priority weed in NSW. The general biosecurity duty applies: anyone dealing with it must prevent, eliminate or minimise the risk it poses.
  • Victoria: Not declared. Not declared under the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994. Other Victorian laws may still apply.
  • South Australia: Not declared. Not declared under the Landscape South Australia Act 2019. Other laws may still apply.
  • Western Australia: Not listed. Not found in the Western Australian Organism List. Check with DPIRD before moving or keeping it.
  • Tasmania: Not declared. Not a declared weed in Tasmania. Other laws may still apply.
  • Northern Territory: Check NT list. There is no NT weed profile for it. Check the NT declared weeds list for its current status.
  • Australian Capital Territory: Not declared. Not declared under the Biosecurity Act 2023 (ACT). A general biosecurity duty still applies.

Legal obligations

Every state and territory places a duty on landholders and people working on land to prevent the spread of invasive species, such as the general biosecurity obligation in Queensland and the general biosecurity duty in New South Wales. Declarations and control requirements differ between states and local government areas, so check the current official list before work starts.

  • Queensland: Biosecurity Act 2014 (Qld), administered by Biosecurity Queensland (13 25 23)

Sources