The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

arctic rush

Hall's rush

Habit Herbs, perennial, 2–10 dm. Herbs, perennial, strongly tufted, to 4 dm.
Rhizomes

long- creeping.

densely short-branched.

Culms

erect, 1–3 mm diam.

terete.

Cataphylls

several.

several.

Leaves

blade usually absent (present in var. mexicanus).

auricles 0.2 mm, apex acutish to rounded, scarious;

blade 4–15 cm.

Inflorescences

lateral, 3–many-flowered, loose to congested;

primary bract barely exceeding to many times longer than inflorescence.

2–7-flowered, loose to congested;

primary bract usually longer than inflorescence.

Flowers

variously pedicellate;

bracteoles membranous;

tepals chestnut brown or paler, lanceolate, (2.5–)3.3–5.5(–6) mm, margins clear;

inner series loosely subtending capsule at maturity; usually slightly shorter, margins scarious to clear, apex acutish to obtuse;

stamens 6, filaments 0.2–1.1 mm, anthers 0.9–2.2 mm;

style 0.9–1.5 mm.

pedicellate;

bracteoles ovate;

tepals light brown with green midstripe, lanceolate or widely so, 4–5 mm, margins scarious;

inner series loosely subtending capsule at maturity, shorter;

stamens 6, filaments 0.8 mm, anthers 0.8–1.1 mm;

style 0.2 mm.

Capsules

3-locular or infrequently pseudo-3-locular, oblate to narrowly ovoid, 3.5–4(–4.5) mm, equal to or exceeding perianth.

brown, 3-locular, oblong-ovoid, 3.5–5 × 1.5–1.9 mm, slightly exceeding perianth.

Seeds

dark amber, oblate to ellipsoid, 0.6–0.8 mm.

amber, body 0.5 mm, tails 0.3 mm.

Juncus arcticus

Juncus hallii

Phenology Flowering and fruiting summer.
Habitat Exposed slopes, stream banks, and meadows in montane and alpine areas
Elevation 1600–3000 m (5200–9800 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; AR; AZ; CA; CO; DE; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MT; ND; NE; NH; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; SD; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NS; NT; NU; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT; Mexico; South America; Asia
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CO; ID; MT; UT; WA; WY
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Numerous entities have been circumscribed and recognized at various nomenclatural ranks by a plethora of authors addressing state or regional floras. In considering the Juncus arcticus-balticus complex as a whole in North America, one is soon confronted with a wide-ranging and obviously polymorphic complex that has not read the literature. It is abundantly clear that the systematics of the group will not be solved on the basis of morphology alone and that resolution of the problem is ripe for molecular investigations.

Varieties 3 7 (3 in the flora).

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

Key
1. Anthers about as long as filaments; blades absent
var. alaskanus
1. Anthers at least 2 times as long as filaments.
→ 2
2. Blade-bearing leaves absent
var. balticus
2. Distal 1 or 2 leaves with obvious blade
var. mexicanus
Source FNA vol. 22. FNA vol. 22.
Parent taxa Juncaceae > Juncus > subg. Genuini Juncaceae > Juncus > subg. Genuini
Sibling taxa
J. acuminatus, J. acutiflorus, J. acutus, J. alpinoarticulatus, J. anthelatus, J. articulatus, J. biglumis, J. bolanderi, J. brachycarpus, J. brachycephalus, J. brachyphyllus, J. brevicaudatus, J. bryoides, J. bufonius, J. bulbosus, J. caesariensis, J. canadensis, J. capillaris, J. capitatus, J. castaneus, J. chlorocephalus, J. compressus, J. confusus, J. cooperi, J. coriaceus, J. covillei, J. debilis, J. dichotomus, J. diffusissimus, J. drummondii, J. dubius, J. dudleyi, J. effusus, J. elliottii, J. ensifolius, J. falcatus, J. filiformis, J. filipendulus, J. georgianus, J. gerardii, J. greenei, J. gymnocarpus, J. hallii, J. hemiendytus, J. howellii, J. inflexus, J. interior, J. kelloggii, J. leiospermus, J. lesueurii, J. longistylis, J. luciensis, J. macrandrus, J. macrophyllus, J. marginatus, J. maritimus, J. megacephalus, J. mertensianus, J. militaris, J. nevadensis, J. nodatus, J. nodosus, J. occidentalis, J. orthophyllus, J. oxymeris, J. parryi, J. patens, J. pelocarpus, J. pervetus, J. phaeocephalus, J. polycephalus, J. regelii, J. repens, J. roemerianus, J. scirpoides, J. secundus, J. squarrosus, J. stygius, J. subcaudatus, J. subtilis, J. supiniformis, J. tenuis, J. texanus, J. textilis, J. tiehmii, J. torreyi, J. trifidus, J. triformis, J. triglumis, J. trigonocarpus, J. uncialis, J. validus, J. vaseyi, J. xiphioides
J. acuminatus, J. acutiflorus, J. acutus, J. alpinoarticulatus, J. anthelatus, J. arcticus, J. articulatus, J. biglumis, J. bolanderi, J. brachycarpus, J. brachycephalus, J. brachyphyllus, J. brevicaudatus, J. bryoides, J. bufonius, J. bulbosus, J. caesariensis, J. canadensis, J. capillaris, J. capitatus, J. castaneus, J. chlorocephalus, J. compressus, J. confusus, J. cooperi, J. coriaceus, J. covillei, J. debilis, J. dichotomus, J. diffusissimus, J. drummondii, J. dubius, J. dudleyi, J. effusus, J. elliottii, J. ensifolius, J. falcatus, J. filiformis, J. filipendulus, J. georgianus, J. gerardii, J. greenei, J. gymnocarpus, J. hemiendytus, J. howellii, J. inflexus, J. interior, J. kelloggii, J. leiospermus, J. lesueurii, J. longistylis, J. luciensis, J. macrandrus, J. macrophyllus, J. marginatus, J. maritimus, J. megacephalus, J. mertensianus, J. militaris, J. nevadensis, J. nodatus, J. nodosus, J. occidentalis, J. orthophyllus, J. oxymeris, J. parryi, J. patens, J. pelocarpus, J. pervetus, J. phaeocephalus, J. polycephalus, J. regelii, J. repens, J. roemerianus, J. scirpoides, J. secundus, J. squarrosus, J. stygius, J. subcaudatus, J. subtilis, J. supiniformis, J. tenuis, J. texanus, J. textilis, J. tiehmii, J. torreyi, J. trifidus, J. triformis, J. triglumis, J. trigonocarpus, J. uncialis, J. validus, J. vaseyi, J. xiphioides
Subordinate taxa
J. arcticus var. alaskanus, J. arcticus var. balticus, J. arcticus var. mexicanus
Name authority Willdenow: Sp. Pl. 2: 206. (1799) Engelmann
Web links