Spinifex, common names, and pedants

Submitted: Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 03:50
ThreadID: 41563 Views:6780 Replies:6 FollowUps:7
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David, (The feller who does 'Tag-along Tours).
I'm not sure where you're coming from. I seem to recall that the Triiodea spp don't just grow between dunes. They also cloathe some small, yet significant rocky outcrops. Like the Mac Donald Ranges just west of Alice. (At least I think it was W of Alice,because I used to lie in bed in winter in what is now Araluen House, and admire the sunrise: those were heavy days, so correct me should you see fit.

David, kind Sir, I ask you.Throughout Australia,how many common names apply to fresh water crayfish? And of those crayfish, how many species are there? Maybe a hundred or more, eh.
And I reckon not one of those species is recorded scientifically by its common name.
Much the same with the genus Triiodea I'd reckon.
You callum hummock grass.
Willem callum spinifex.
You both have similar images of a plant and its properties.
So who gives a toss? Triiodea tends to be a rounded ball of needles, prone to napalm-like(no. petrol-like) tendencies when exposed to flame(Heat I can't speak of).
On yesterday's post, I offered you the chance to clarify your position.
You ignored the offer, and went after Willem (As I will also when I think he's wrong)
My final point is that, as far as I am aware, there is no taxonomic group named as either 'Hummock grass' or 'Spinifex'. These are merely lay terms relating to members of the genus 'Triiodea' (and please forgive spelling errors.My ignorance is not the point).
Call it what you will, if the mongrel burns your car, you'll possibly revert to rather unscientific nomenclature. Be gentle,JH.
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Reply By: troopyman - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 08:16

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 08:16
Damn it and blast it . Do you think thats Triodia pungens or Triodia basedowii that is causing my fourby to burn to the ground willem .
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Reply By: Member - Jeff H (QLD) - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 09:03

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 09:03
Ah Troopyman, a mystery of vast proportions.
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Follow Up By: troopyman - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 09:18

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 09:18
I was bored , sorry .
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Reply By: David from David and Justine Olsen's 4WD Tag-Along - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 09:37

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 09:37
Wow!!!

Firstly I am not a pedant, I don't care what you call spinifex.

I think you may have misunderstood my post completely. I was just offering a little snippet of information and having a bit of a fun debate. Hence the smiley faces.

Sorry you saw my post as an attack on Willem. I would not do that.

Thanks for your offer to clarify my position.

My position is this-

I love EO and the forum. I love the free exchange of information and opinion that occurs here. I was adding a little note re spiinifex....just a little piece of information I learned along the way in this life. Sorry if you saw it differently. I will not and never have attacked Willem or anyone else.

Sorry I didn't respond in a timely manner. I have a business to run and sometimes I don't read the posts here for weeks

Below is further clarification using quotes from my previous post.

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I've found a more literal translation. Pila is just one word a large group of Aboriginal People including the Pila Ngaru (so called Spinifex people) use.

Pila describes the low plains covered in hummock grass, the areas between dunes. So I guess the Pila Ngaru call themselves people of the hummock grass plains.

But Willie if it makes you feel better, you can call them Spinifex. :-)
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Note the use of smiley. Note the Cheers!

To further clarify. Pila describes the land type, so though Triodia grows on sandhills, the Pila Ngaru consider themselves people of the hummock grass plains, not people of the sandhills covered in hummock grass. My point was simply that you can't say because we translate Pila to spinifex, that we are right. There are many words describing spinifex country in a single aboriginal language. So Pila Ngaru in my view are people of the hummock grass plains. If your prefer to call hummock grass spinifex, then you will call them people of the spinifex plains...feel free....I don't care what anyones calls the stuff. I was just adding to the flow of information on this forum. :-):-) The smileys here mean I am not atttacking you, and I mean the above to be read in good humour.

Another quote from my earlier post
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Not my idea mate, I am just quoting the botanists, same as Mr Pearson did.

Unfortunately my influence doesn't extent to the naming of genera or species, I have to put up with whatever the botanists called em :-) and Triodia is it. Not sure of the latin root of the word, but it may refer to the divided nature of the hummocks. ie that the grass isn't a continuous cover.

tribuo : to give out, divide, allot, assign, grant, give, allow.
tricesimus : triduana : lasting three days.
triduana : lasting three days.
triduanus : three days' duration, lasting three days.
triduum : a period of three days

From Wikipedia

Spinifex may refer to:

Spinifex, a species of grass that grows in coastal areas of Australia.
Spinifex, Triodia, a hummock grass of arid Australia, covering twenty per cent of the Australian continent. Although not technically Spinifex, it is commonly referred to as such.

So feel free to refer to it as such :-)
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Note use of word mate
Note use of smilies.

There is no taxonomic term hummock grass, it is a common name. I used it to differentiate from Spinifex sp. which is a real genus.

Spinifex (genus)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Spinifex (coastal))
Spinifex grass

Spinifex longifolius
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Genus: Spinifex
L.
Species
S. sericeus - Beach Spinifex

This article is about an Australian coastal grass species. For the grass species of arid Australia, also commonly referred to as Spinefex, see Triodia (plant genus).
Unlike the plants of the related genus Triodia, Spinifex species are found only in wet habitats along coastlines. It is often planted along coastal regions, in snow drifts and to bind sand along the seashore.

I am sorry if anyone was offended by my earlier posts. Maybe I need to use more smilies.

AnswerID: 217438

Follow Up By: Des Lexic - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 10:36

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 10:36
:-)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
:D))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

David / Justine very diplomatic
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Follow Up By: Member - Jeff H (QLD) - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 15:50

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 15:50
Wow indeed, and it looks like I owe you an apology, David.
Apparently there are some 67 species of spinifex, but only a couple of species of Spinifex.( I had overlooked the capital S in your original post.)

Your smiley faces don't appear on my screen. Maybe my pedantic nature scared 'em off. Or maybe I just did't look closely enough.

Yes I did totally misunderstand your post. I read it as an attempt to banish the word 'spinifex' from arid grasslands, and that would be a shame.

I suppose 'cheers' would appear out of place? Happy travels, Jeff.
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Follow Up By: David from David and Justine Olsen's 4WD Tag-Along - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 18:23

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 18:23
Cheers to you too. And thanks for the warning about smileys not appearing. I will keep that in mind.

Cheers and happy travels as well.

David
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Follow Up By: Member - Ed. C. (QLD) - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 19:35

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 19:35
Jeff,
have a look here.. Site Link ...
Confucius say.....
"He who lie underneath automobile with tool in hand,
....Not necessarily mechanic!!"

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Reply By: Red One - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 21:27

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 21:27
Spoke for 45 min and didn't understand a word he said.

Cheers
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Follow Up By: David from David and Justine Olsen's 4WD Tag-Along - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 23:16

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 23:16
ROTFLMAO

Now that I understand :-)
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Reply By: Member - Doug T (W.A) - Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 23:34

Wednesday, Jan 24, 2007 at 23:34
WooooooooooFFFF

Spinifex was feature horse Mt Isa 1967
gift by Daughter

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Follow Up By: Member - Ed. C. (QLD) - Thursday, Jan 25, 2007 at 00:22

Thursday, Jan 25, 2007 at 00:22
Aaaahhhh, now that brings back memories...

I have a (rather vague) recollection of a horse by that name featuring at Mareeba around that era as well.. '69-70, I think??.. presumably the same bronc???
Confucius say.....
"He who lie underneath automobile with tool in hand,
....Not necessarily mechanic!!"

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Reply By: Member - Jeff H (QLD) - Thursday, Jan 25, 2007 at 00:57

Thursday, Jan 25, 2007 at 00:57
Dusty, thank you for the humerous input: after all, it's essentially crap n egos. Slip outside and see if that bloomin great comet is still hanging in there. Our Western sky is clouded in - again.

David, called Ed re smileys to thank him. No sign on our screen.(Similar problem with Andrew recently re clearing water) ?. Dunno

Looked at contacting you off forum. I'm too old for your site.

Dave, when you presented your educational and jovial post re spinifex, hummock grass and Spinifex, you apparently had hi jinks in mind.
Perhaps you can see that the more dour among us took exception to a tour operator telling city folk that "this here stuff is called hummock grass : Spinifex is a beach genus (Somewhat less common )".
Mate,if I could do a smiley face, then I would.
As I read it, those vast,arid lands, clothed mainly in Triodia, are termed 'hummock grasslands". And the predominant plants growing there are referred to (almost universally), as spinifex.
In a similar vein, what I (stupidly, probably),refer to as keroscene grass country is in fact, more correctly termed "tussock grassland".

Close enough, Old Man?
(And may no kindling ignite beneath your clients' vehicles). JH.
AnswerID: 217636

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