Ecology of Hyparrhenia rufa (Nees) in Derived Savanna in North-Western Costa Rica

Hyparrhenia rufa (Nees) Stapf, a grass of African origin, is the only herbaceous plant that prospers under annual burning in the most prevalent type of derived savanna in northwestern Costa Rica. The present account summarizes observations and experiments on the autecology of the grass in this locality. All field records not otherwise specified were made at an annually burned site approximately 8 km north-west of the city of Cailas, in the Province of Guanacaste. The