OregonFlora: Carex concinna vs. Carex pelocarpa

	Carex concinna	Carex pelocarpa
	cute sedge	duskyseed sedge
Habit	Plants rhizomatous, shoots arising singly or in clumps, 5.5–20 cm tall; plant bases reddish brown.	Plants cespitose, 10–40 cm tall.
Leaves	sheath fronts membranous; blades 1–3.1 mm wide.	3–4 mm wide.
Inflorescences	basal spikes absent; lowest bract sheath inflated, 2–5 mm long; blade absent or less than 2 cm long, purpletinged; lateral spikes 2–3, crowded near the terminal spike, 0.4–0.7 × 0.2–0.4 mm; terminal spike male; tiny, 0.3–0.7 cm × 1.1–1.5 mm.	spikes 2–4, sessile, crowded or rarely the lowest one remote; lateral spikes female, 0.7–1 cm × 5–7 mm; terminal spike gynaecandrous.
Perigynia	elliptic, 2.3–3.3(3.5) × 1.1–1.4 mm, pubescent with crinkled hairs; veinless but with 2 ribs, bases succulent, withering when dry; beak 0.3–0.4 mm long; stigmas 3.	obovate or circular, nearly flat, abruptly narrowed to the beak, 3.5–4.5 × 2.5–3 mm; glossy dark reddish brown, often with lighter; yellowish or green margins; beak 0.5–0.8 mm long; stigmas 3.
Achenes	rounded to trigonous.	trigonous, filling less than half of the perigynium body.
Male scales	dark reddish brown with whitish margins.
Female scales	smaller than the perigynia; reddish brown; ovate; apex obtuse, minutely ciliate.	lanceolate; about as long as the perigynia, dark brown or black, including the margins and midvein; apex acute or mucronate.
Anthers	1.3–1.4 mm long.
2n	=54.

	Carex concinna	Carex pelocarpa
Distribution	[WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	[BONAP county map]
Discussion	Stream banks, bogs, meadows, and open forests, on stable, usually calcareous substrates that are wet in spring but may dry out later. 1600–2500 m. BW. North to AK, east to Newfoundland. Native. Carex concinna is recognized by its hairy perigynia, tiny staminate spike, and absent or tiny inflorescence bract. It lacks basal spikes among the leaf bases.	Alpine slopes, ridges, boulder fields, talus slopes, and rocky streamsides. 2500–3100 m. BR, BW. ID, NV; northeast to MT, east to UT and CO. Native. Carex pelocarpa is an alpine sedge with dark, sessile spikes. It is similar to C. media, which also has sessile spikes, but C. media grows in lower elevation, often wetter habitats and has smaller, green perigynia that are nearly filled by the achene. Its spikes usually have more contrast of dark scales with light perigynia, in part because the scales are usually less than half as long as the perigynia. Carex pelocarpa and C. nova have sometimes been treated as the same species.
Source	Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 195 Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting	Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 219 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. 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. 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. 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 nova
Web links	Local floras: BC, 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	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 pelocarpa

cute sedge

duskyseed sedge

Habit

Plants rhizomatous, shoots arising singly or in clumps, 5.5–20 cm tall; plant bases reddish brown.

Plants cespitose, 10–40 cm tall.

Leaves

sheath fronts membranous;

blades 1–3.1 mm wide.

3–4 mm wide.

Inflorescences

basal spikes absent; lowest bract sheath inflated, 2–5 mm long;

blade absent or less than 2 cm long, purpletinged;

lateral spikes 2–3, crowded near the terminal spike, 0.4–0.7 × 0.2–0.4 mm; terminal spike male; tiny, 0.3–0.7 cm × 1.1–1.5 mm.

spikes 2–4, sessile, crowded or rarely the lowest one remote;

lateral spikes female, 0.7–1 cm × 5–7 mm; terminal spike gynaecandrous.

Perigynia

elliptic, 2.3–3.3(3.5) × 1.1–1.4 mm, pubescent with crinkled hairs; veinless but with 2 ribs, bases succulent, withering when dry;

beak 0.3–0.4 mm long;

stigmas 3.

obovate or circular, nearly flat, abruptly narrowed to the beak, 3.5–4.5 × 2.5–3 mm; glossy dark reddish brown, often with lighter; yellowish or green margins;

beak 0.5–0.8 mm long;

stigmas 3.

Achenes

rounded to trigonous.

trigonous, filling less than half of the perigynium body.

Male scales

dark reddish brown with whitish margins.

Female scales

smaller than the perigynia; reddish brown; ovate;

apex obtuse, minutely ciliate.

lanceolate; about as long as the perigynia, dark brown or black, including the margins and midvein;

apex acute or mucronate.

Anthers

1.3–1.4 mm long.

=54.

Carex pelocarpa

Distribution

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Discussion

Stream banks, bogs, meadows, and open forests, on stable, usually calcareous substrates that are wet in spring but may dry out later. 1600–2500 m. BW. North to AK, east to Newfoundland. Native.

Carex concinna is recognized by its hairy perigynia, tiny staminate spike, and absent or tiny inflorescence bract. It lacks basal spikes among the leaf bases.

Alpine slopes, ridges, boulder fields, talus slopes, and rocky streamsides. 2500–3100 m. BR, BW. ID, NV; northeast to MT, east to UT and CO. Native.

Carex pelocarpa is an alpine sedge with dark, sessile spikes. It is similar to C. media, which also has sessile spikes, but C. media grows in lower elevation, often wetter habitats and has smaller, green perigynia that are nearly filled by the achene. Its spikes usually have more contrast of dark scales with light perigynia, in part because the scales are usually less than half as long as the perigynia. Carex pelocarpa and C. nova have sometimes been treated as the same species.

Source

Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 195
Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting

Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 219
Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting

Sibling taxa