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prickly sedge, star sedge

livid sedge, pale sedge

Habit Plants cespitose, 10–90(135) cm tall. Plants rhizomatous, the rhizomes slender; culms 10–45(55) cm tall.
Leaves

usually 0.7–3(3.8) mm wide.

plant bases whitish or pale to medium brown; lower sheaths usually with blades;

blades 1–3.5 mm wide, glaucous, channeled.

Inflorescences

spikes separated or crowded, usually gynaecandrous, with perigynia widely spreading or reflexed at maturity;

lateral spikes 3–15.5 mm long; terminal spikes 5–24 mm long, often with a narrow male portion 2–16.5 mm long.

lateral spikes usually 1–2; female, 0.7–2.5 cm × 4–5.5 mm; terminal spike male, 1–3.3 cm × 1.4–5 mm, with 16–100 flowers.

Perigynia

tapered gradually to the beak; (2.6)3–4.8 mm long, green to brown, veined or veinless on the ventral surface over the achene;

base swollen; pithy when mature;

beak 0.9–2 mm long, 33–60% of perigynium length.

3–4.8(5) × 1.4–2.1 mm, light green or whitish; widest in the middle and tapered to both ends;

stigmas 3.

Achenes

lenticular.

trigonous.

Female scales

inconspicuous; shorter than the mature achene.

more or less as long as or somewhat longer than the perigynia; pale to very dark brown with green midrib, obtuse.

Carex echinata

Carex livida

Distribution
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Cosmopolitan. 2 subspecies.

Narrow-leaved Carex echinata is identified by its widely spreading, gradually tapering perigynia in star-like spikes.

Bogs and fens with the water table at or close to the surface, usually with extensive peat deposits but sometimes on mineral substrates next to slow streams. 100–1400 m. Casc, Est. CA, WA; north to AK, east to Newfoundland, IL, NJ; South America; Eurasia, Panama. Native.

From a distance, the grayish color of C. livida can give a bog a moldy appearance. This is a glaucous, narrow-leaved, rhizomatous sedge with pale, papillose, spindle-shaped perigynia. Similar C. klamathensis, of serpentine fens, has broader leaves and obovate perigynia with the apex usually bent to the dorsal side.

Source Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 199
Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting
Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 212
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. 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. 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. 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
Subordinate taxa
C. echinata ssp. echinata, C. echinata ssp. phyllomanica
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