Xyris capensisThunb.

Cape yellow-eyed grasscommon xyris

WFO wfo-0000609515 Accepted WFO 2026-06 8 photographs CC0 / CC BY / CC BY-SA

Plate 1 figs. a–h · 8 separate observations

Xyris capensis, photographed by Mahomed Desai
fig. a Mahomed Desai, CC BY 4.0 / 2022-02-16 / obs. 179688657
Xyris capensis, photographed by Jeremy Gilmore
fig. b Jeremy Gilmore, CC BY 4.0 / obs. 119623675
Xyris capensis, photographed by Jeremy Gilmore
fig. c Jeremy Gilmore, CC BY 4.0 / obs. 119447657
Xyris capensis, photographed by Tony Rebelo
fig. d Tony Rebelo, CC BY-SA 4.0 / obs. 59248061
Xyris capensis, photographed by Tony Rebelo
fig. e Tony Rebelo, CC BY-SA 4.0 / obs. 59219671
Xyris capensis, photographed by Andrew Hankey
fig. f Andrew Hankey, CC BY-SA 4.0 / obs. 30808372
Xyris capensis, photographed by Romer N. Rabarijaona
fig. g Romer N. Rabarijaona, CC0 1.0 / obs. 1781556
Xyris capensis, photographed by Tony Rebelo
fig. h Tony Rebelo, CC BY-SA 4.0 / obs. 34388801

Every figure is a research-grade observation under CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA, rehosted with the photographer’s name, the licence and the observation it came from. Photographs under a NonCommercial licence are excluded from this site and are never stored, which costs us a great many pictures and is not negotiable.

Native range 51 botanical countries

Regions where Xyris capensis is native: Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Provinces, Congo, DR Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Namibia, Nigeria, Northern Provinces, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan-South Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, China South-Central, China Southeast, Assam, Cambodia, East Himalaya, India, Jawa, Laos, Malaya, Maluku, Nepal, New Guinea, Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Thailand, Vietnam, Brazil South, Brazil Southeast AngolaBotswanaBurundiCameroonCape ProvincesCongoDR CongoEquatorial GuineaEswatiniEthiopiaGabonGhanaGuineaGuinea-BissauKenyaKwaZulu-NatalLesothoMadagascarMalawiMaliNamibiaNigeriaNorthern ProvincesRwandaSenegalSierra LeoneSudan-South SudanTanzaniaTogoUgandaZambiaZimbabweChina South-CentralChina SoutheastAssamCambodiaEast HimalayaIndiaJawaLaosMalayaMalukuNepalNew GuineaSri LankaSulawesiSumateraThailandVietnamBrazil SouthBrazil Southeast
Native distribution of Xyris capensis, after Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants. Introduced, extinct and doubtful records are excluded, so this is where the plant is from, not everywhere it now grows.
RegionTDWG codeContinent
Angola ANG AFRICA
Botswana BOT
Burundi BUR
Cameroon CMN
Cape Provinces CPP
Congo CON
DR Congo ZAI
Equatorial Guinea EQG
Eswatini SWZ
Ethiopia ETH
Gabon GAB
Ghana GHA
Guinea GUI
Guinea-Bissau GNB
Kenya KEN
KwaZulu-Natal NAT
Lesotho LES
Madagascar MDG
Malawi MLW
Mali MLI
Namibia NAM
Nigeria NGA
Northern Provinces TVL
Rwanda RWA
Senegal SEN
Sierra Leone SIE
Sudan-South Sudan SUD
Tanzania TAN
Togo TOG
Uganda UGA
Zambia ZAM
Zimbabwe ZIM
Assam ASS ASIA-TROPICAL
Cambodia CBD
East Himalaya EHM
India IND
Jawa JAW
Laos LAO
Malaya MLY
Maluku MOL
Nepal NEP
New Guinea NWG
Sri Lanka SRL
Sulawesi SUL
Sumatera SUM
Thailand THA
Vietnam VIE
China South-Central CHC ASIA-TEMPERATE
China Southeast CHS
Brazil South BZS SOUTHERN AMERICA
Brazil Southeast BZL

Region boundaries approximated from Natural Earth (public domain) and mapped to TDWG World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions (WGSRPD) level-3 botanical countries (Brummitt 2001). Indicative, not the official WGSRPD geometry.

Also published as 18 synonyms

A synonym is not an error. It is a record of botanists disagreeing, in print, about where this plant belongs. Each of these was somebody’s considered answer.

  • Xyris capensis f. nilagiriensis (Steud.) L.A.Nilsson
  • Xyris capensis f. schoenoides (Mart.) L.A.Nilsson
  • Xyris capensis f. semifuscata (Bojer ex Baker) L.A.Nilsson
  • Xyris capensis var. angolensis Malme
  • Xyris capensis var. multicaulis L.A.Nilsson
  • Xyris capensis var. nilagiriensis (Steud.) Engl.
  • Xyris capensis var. schoenoides (Mart.) L.A.Nilsson
  • Xyris flabellata P.Royen
  • Xyris melanocephala Miq.
  • Xyris nilagarensis Steud. ex Hook.f.
  • Xyris nilagiriensis Steud.
  • Xyris novoguineensis Hatus.
  • Xyris reptans Rendle
  • Xyris schoenoides Mart.
  • Xyris semifuscata Bojer ex Baker
  • Xyris subrubella Malme ex Hutch. & Dalziel
  • Xyris sumatrana Malme
  • Xyris zombana N.E.Br.

Sourcesevery claim on this page

  1. World Flora Online Plant List. accepted name, authority, classification. CC0. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  2. iNaturalist. photographs and flowering annotations, CC0 / CC BY / CC BY-SA only. per photograph. Retrieved 2026-06-27.
  3. Wikidata. common name (P1843), joined on the World Flora Online identifier (P7715). CC0. Retrieved 2026-07-13.
  4. Kew, World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP v16). native distribution by TDWG level-3 botanical country, and life form. CC BY 3.0. Retrieved 2026-06-04.

We publish what we can source and we say so when we cannot. This page has no care advice and no toxicity claim, because we do not yet have those from a source we can cite.