OregonFlora: Carex bebbii vs. Carex atrata

	Carex bebbii	Carex heteroneura (synonym of Carex atrata)
	Bebb's sedge	blackened sedge, different-nerved sedge, smooth-fruit sedge
Habit	Plants cespitose, 20–90 cm tall.	Plants cespitose, 25–60(100) cm tall.
Leaves	1.7–4.2 mm wide.	2–6 mm wide.
Inflorescences	1.1–3 cm × 5–14 mm; spikes 3–10, overlapping; more or less round, gynaecandrous; distinct.	spikes 3–7(8), 1–2.7 cm long; lateral spikes female, spreading to erect; the lowest spike sometimes separated from the others and pendent; terminal spike gynaecandrous.
Perigynia	ovate or elliptic; plano-convex, 2.5–3.8 × (1)1.2–2 mm, spreading, green when young, becoming reddish brown, with 3+ dorsal veins; the ventral side with 1–3 faint veins or veined only near the base; wings 0.2–0.5 mm wide; beak tips reddish brown, winged; and more or less ciliate-serrulate, 1.2–2.2 mm from top of achene to tip of beak; stigmas 2.	elliptical to obovate or orbicular; more or less flattened except over the achene, 2.5–4.5 × 1.75–3 mm, green, yellow, or light to dark brown; beak 0.3–0.5 mm long; stigmas 3.
Achenes	lenticular, 1–1.3 × 0.6–0.9 mm, 0.3–0.4 mm thick.	trigonous, filling half or less of the perigynium body.
Female scales	2.5–3.5 mm long; shorter and narrower than their perigynia; reddish brown; mid-stripe green; pale, or brown.	shorter than to longer than the perigynia; dark purplish black; margins hyaline, mottled, or pale; midrib pale or dark like the rest of the scale; apex acute or somewhat acuminate.
2n	=68, 70.

	Carex bebbii	Carex heteroneura
Distribution	[WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	[BONAP county map]
Discussion	Meadows, stream banks, irrigation ponds and roadside ditches. 700–1300 m. BW, Lava. ID, WA; north to AK, east to Newfoundland. Native. Carex bebbii is difficult to key but easier to recognize by its reddish brown inflorescences with rounded spikes. Carex subfusca has similarly small perigynia but its inflorescences are green, straw-colored, or light brown, and proportionately narrower. Carex pachystachya has larger, darker inflorescences. Both these species have beak tips unwinged and entire for 0.4–0.7 mm from the tip, unlike C. bebbii.	High montane to alpine streamsides, seeps, moist to mesic meadows, and open forests, sometimes in wind-swept sites that have little snow accumulation, but not in fully dry sites. 1300–2800 m. BR, BW, Casc. CA, ID, NV, WA; north to British Columbia, east to CO. Native. Carex heteroneura is a coarse, cespitose, sedge with erect spikes (except sometimes the lowest) and broad, flat perigynia. Its entire inflorescence tends to nod when fully ripe. The more common C. spectabilis is similar, but its spikes lack the contrast between dark female scales and light perigynium margins, its spikes are less crowded, and it is a finer textured plant. Rare C. atrosquama has elliptical, golden perigynia. Two subspecies have been recognized in C. heteroneura, but variation is continuous.
Source	Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 191 Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting	Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 204 Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting
Sibling taxa	C. abrupta, C. agastachys, C. amplifolia, C. angustata, C. aperta, C. aquatilis, C. arcta, C. arenaria, C. atherodes, C. athrostachya, C. atrosquama, C. aurea, C. barbarae, C. bolanderi, C. brainerdii, C. brevior, C. breweri, C. buchananii, C. buxbaumii, C. californica, C. canescens, C. capillaris, C. capitata, C. chordorrhiza, C. comans, C. comosa, C. concinna, C. concinnoides, C. cordillerana, C. crawfordii, C. cusickii, C. davyi, C. deflexa, C. densa, C. diandra, C. disperma, C. distans, C. douglasii, C. duriuscula, C. echinata, C. exsiccata, C. feta, C. filifolia, C. fissuricola, C. fracta, C. geyeri, C. gynocrates, C. gynodynama, C. halliana, C. harfordii, C. hassei, C. haydeniana, C. hendersonii, C. heteroneura, C. hirsutella, C. hirta, C. hoodii, C. hystericina, C. idahoa, C. illota, C. infirminervia, C. inops, C. integra, C. interior, C. interrupta, C. jonesii, C. kelloggii, C. klamathensis, C. kobomugi, C. laeviculmis, C. lasiocarpa, C. leporina, C. leporinella, C. leptalea, C. leptopoda, C. limosa, C. livida, C. longii, C. luzulina, C. lyngbyei, C. macrocephala, C. macrochaeta, C. media, C. mendocinensis, C. mertensii, C. mesochorea, C. micropoda, C. microptera, C. multicaulis, C. nardina, C. nebrascensis, C. nervina, C. neurophora, C. nigricans, C. nudata, C. obnupta, C. pachycarpa, C. pachystachya, C. pansa, C. paysonis, C. pellita, C. pelocarpa, C. pendula, C. petasata, C. phaeocephala, C. pluriflora, C. praeceptorum, C. praegracilis, C. praticola, C. preslii, C. pumila, C. raynoldsii, C. retrorsa, C. rossii, C. saxatilis, C. scabriuscula, C. scirpoidea, C. scoparia, C. scopulorum, C. serpenticola, C. serratodens, C. sheldonii, C. simulata, C. spectabilis, C. stipata, C. straminiformis, C. subbracteata, C. subfusca, C. subnigricans, C. sychnocephala, C. tahoensis, C. tiogana, C. tribuloides, C. tumulicola, C. unilateralis, C. utriculata, C. vallicola, C. vernacula, C. vesicaria, C. viridula, C. vulpinoidea, C. whitneyi, C. zikae	C. abrupta, C. agastachys, C. amplifolia, C. angustata, C. aperta, C. aquatilis, C. arcta, C. arenaria, C. atherodes, C. athrostachya, C. atrosquama, C. aurea, C. barbarae, C. bebbii, C. bolanderi, C. brainerdii, C. brevior, C. breweri, C. buchananii, C. buxbaumii, C. californica, C. canescens, C. capillaris, C. capitata, C. chordorrhiza, C. comans, C. comosa, C. concinna, C. concinnoides, C. cordillerana, C. crawfordii, C. cusickii, C. davyi, C. deflexa, C. densa, C. diandra, C. disperma, C. distans, C. douglasii, C. duriuscula, C. echinata, C. exsiccata, C. feta, C. filifolia, C. fissuricola, C. fracta, C. geyeri, C. gynocrates, C. gynodynama, C. halliana, C. harfordii, C. hassei, C. haydeniana, C. hendersonii, C. heteroneura, C. hirsutella, C. hirta, C. hoodii, C. hystericina, C. idahoa, C. illota, C. infirminervia, C. inops, C. integra, C. interior, C. interrupta, C. jonesii, C. kelloggii, C. klamathensis, C. kobomugi, C. laeviculmis, C. lasiocarpa, C. leporina, C. leporinella, C. leptalea, C. leptopoda, C. limosa, C. livida, C. longii, C. luzulina, C. lyngbyei, C. macrocephala, C. macrochaeta, C. media, C. mendocinensis, C. mertensii, C. mesochorea, C. micropoda, C. microptera, C. multicaulis, C. nardina, C. nebrascensis, C. nervina, C. neurophora, C. nigricans, C. nudata, C. obnupta, C. pachycarpa, C. pachystachya, C. pansa, C. paysonis, C. pellita, C. pelocarpa, C. pendula, C. petasata, C. phaeocephala, C. pluriflora, C. praeceptorum, C. praegracilis, C. praticola, C. preslii, C. pumila, C. raynoldsii, C. retrorsa, C. rossii, C. saxatilis, C. scabriuscula, C. scirpoidea, C. scoparia, C. scopulorum, C. serpenticola, C. serratodens, C. sheldonii, C. simulata, C. spectabilis, C. stipata, C. straminiformis, C. subbracteata, C. subfusca, C. subnigricans, C. sychnocephala, C. tahoensis, C. tiogana, C. tribuloides, C. tumulicola, C. unilateralis, C. utriculata, C. vallicola, C. vernacula, C. vesicaria, C. viridula, C. vulpinoidea, C. whitneyi, C. zikae
Synonyms		Carex atrata, Carex atrata var. erecta, Carex epapillosa, Carex heteroneura var. epapillosa
Web links	Local floras: BC, OR, WA Local Web sites: Flora NW, PNW Herbaria WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	Local floras: OR Local Web sites: Flora NW, PNW Herbaria WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Carex heteroneura

(synonym of Carex atrata)

Bebb's sedge

blackened sedge, different-nerved sedge, smooth-fruit sedge

Habit

Plants cespitose, 20–90 cm tall.

Plants cespitose, 25–60(100) cm tall.

Leaves

1.7–4.2 mm wide.

2–6 mm wide.

Inflorescences

1.1–3 cm × 5–14 mm;

spikes 3–10, overlapping; more or less round, gynaecandrous; distinct.

spikes 3–7(8), 1–2.7 cm long;

lateral spikes female, spreading to erect; the lowest spike sometimes separated from the others and pendent; terminal spike gynaecandrous.

Perigynia

ovate or elliptic; plano-convex, 2.5–3.8 × (1)1.2–2 mm, spreading, green when young, becoming reddish brown, with 3+ dorsal veins; the ventral side with 1–3 faint veins or veined only near the base;

wings 0.2–0.5 mm wide;

beak tips reddish brown, winged; and more or less ciliate-serrulate, 1.2–2.2 mm from top of achene to tip of beak;

stigmas 2.

elliptical to obovate or orbicular; more or less flattened except over the achene, 2.5–4.5 × 1.75–3 mm, green, yellow, or light to dark brown;

beak 0.3–0.5 mm long;

stigmas 3.

Achenes

lenticular, 1–1.3 × 0.6–0.9 mm, 0.3–0.4 mm thick.

trigonous, filling half or less of the perigynium body.

Female scales

2.5–3.5 mm long; shorter and narrower than their perigynia; reddish brown; mid-stripe green; pale, or brown.

shorter than to longer than the perigynia; dark purplish black;

margins hyaline, mottled, or pale;

midrib pale or dark like the rest of the scale;

apex acute or somewhat acuminate.

=68, 70.

Carex heteroneura

Distribution

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Discussion

Meadows, stream banks, irrigation ponds and roadside ditches. 700–1300 m. BW, Lava. ID, WA; north to AK, east to Newfoundland. Native.

Carex bebbii is difficult to key but easier to recognize by its reddish brown inflorescences with rounded spikes. Carex subfusca has similarly small perigynia but its inflorescences are green, straw-colored, or light brown, and proportionately narrower. Carex pachystachya has larger, darker inflorescences. Both these species have beak tips unwinged and entire for 0.4–0.7 mm from the tip, unlike C. bebbii.

High montane to alpine streamsides, seeps, moist to mesic meadows, and open forests, sometimes in wind-swept sites that have little snow accumulation, but not in fully dry sites. 1300–2800 m. BR, BW, Casc. CA, ID, NV, WA; north to British Columbia, east to CO. Native.

Carex heteroneura is a coarse, cespitose, sedge with erect spikes (except sometimes the lowest) and broad, flat perigynia. Its entire inflorescence tends to nod when fully ripe. The more common C. spectabilis is similar, but its spikes lack the contrast between dark female scales and light perigynium margins, its spikes are less crowded, and it is a finer textured plant. Rare C. atrosquama has elliptical, golden perigynia. Two subspecies have been recognized in C. heteroneura, but variation is continuous.

Source

Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 191
Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting

Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 204
Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting

Sibling taxa