Flora of North America species comparison

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Carex scopulorum var. prionophylla

Carex scopulorum var. bracteosa
Photo is of parent taxon

firethread sedge, saw-leaf Rocky Mountain sedge, saw-leaf sedge
Photo is of parent taxon

bract Rocky Mountain sedge, bract sedge, Holm's Rocky Mountain sedge, mountain sedge, Sierra alpine sedge
Culms

35–90 cm, scabrous on angles.

11–65 cm, scabrous on angles.
Leaves

proximal sheaths red-brown, fronts with (red) pale brown spots, prominently ladder-fibrillose, bladeless, glabrous, backs scabrous;

leaf blades 3–6 mm wide.

proximal sheaths red-brown, fronts with pale brown spots, veinless, with blades, glabrous, backs scabrous;

blades 3–6 mm wide.
Perigynia

ellipsoid to obovoid, apex acute.

ellipsoid to obovoid, apex obtuse or rounded.
2n

= 74.

= 72–80.

Carex scopulorum var. prionophylla

Carex scopulorum var. bracteosa
Phenology Fruiting Jul–Aug. Fruiting Aug–Sep.
Habitat Wet subalpine meadows Wet subalpine and alpine meadows
Elevation 1000–1400 m (3300–4600 ft) 1200–3000 m (3900–9800 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
ID; MT; WA; BC
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; CO; ID; MT; OR; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC; YT
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Carex scopulorum var. prionophylla usually occurs at somewhat lower elevations than var. bracteosa. Where the two are sympatric, they can be distinguished by the bladeless, ladder-fibrillose basal sheaths and the narrower ellipsoid perigynia of var. prionophylla.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

A common sedge of the central Rocky Mountains, Carex scopulorum var. bracteosa is distinguished from var. scopulorum by the scabrous stems and sheaths and by the narrower, more ellipsoid perigynia. It is usually distinguishable from var. prionophylla by the absence of bladeless, ladder-fibrillose sheaths; the two taxa may be difficult to identify in areas where both occur.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 23, p. 400. FNA vol. 23, p. 399.
Parent taxa Cyperaceae > Carex > sect. Phacocystis > Carex scopulorum Cyperaceae > Carex > sect. Phacocystis > Carex scopulorum
Sibling taxa
C. scopulorum var. bracteosa, C. scopulorum var. scopulorum
C. scopulorum var. prionophylla, C. scopulorum var. scopulorum
Synonyms C. prionophylla, C. miserabilis C. vulgaris var. bracteosa, C. brachypoda, C. campylocarpa, C. campylocarpa subsp. affinis, C. gymnoclada
Name authority (Holm) L. A. Standley: Syst. Bot. Monogr. 7: 86. (1985) (L. H. Bailey) F. J. Hermann: Leafl. W. Bot. 9: 16. (1959)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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