Bambusa is a large genus of clumping bamboos.[3] Most species of Bambusa are rather large, with numerous branches emerging from the nodes, and one or two much larger than the rest. The branches can be as long as 11 m (35 ft).
They are native to Southeast Asia, China, Taiwan, the Himalayas, New Guinea, Melanesia, and the Northern Territory of Australia. They are also reportedly naturalized in other regions, e.g. Africa, Americas, and various oceanic islands.[2][4][5][6]
Fossil leaves of †Bambusa ilinskiae are described from the Miocene deposits of the Carpathians. The fossil leaves of †Bambusa lugdunensis are known mainly from the Miocene of the Massif du Coiron in Ardèche, France, Miocene of Bełchatów in Poland, Middle Miocene of Austria, the Neogene of the Transcarpathians and the Pliocene of southern France.[7] Findings of fossil Bambusa leaf impressions of Messinian age (ca. 5.7 Ma) from Monte Tondo in the Romagna Apennines in northern Italy, are similar to fossil †Bambusa lugdunensis leaves.[8]