Juncus bufonius |
Juncus arcticus |
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common toad rush, toad rush |
arctic rush |
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Habit | Herbs, annual, cespitose, 0.5–4 dm. | Herbs, perennial, 2–10 dm. | ||||||||
Rhizomes | long- creeping. |
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Culms | 1–many, occasionally becoming decumbent. |
erect, 1–3 mm diam. |
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Cataphylls | 0–2. |
several. |
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Leaves | basal and cauline; auricles rudimentary or absent; blade flat, 3–13 cm × 0.3–1.1 mm. |
blade usually absent (present in var. mexicanus). |
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Inflorescences | loose and diffuse or less often compact, usually at least ½1/2 total height of plant; primary bract shorter than inflorescence. |
lateral, 3–many-flowered, loose to congested; primary bract barely exceeding to many times longer than inflorescence. |
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Flowers | bracteoles 2; tepals greenish, lanceolate, 3.8–7(–8.5) mm; inner series slightly shorter, apex sometimes obtuse; stamens 3–6, filaments (0.7–)1–1.8 mm, anthers 0.3–0.8 mm; style 0.1–0.2 mm. |
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. |
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Capsules | tan to reddish brown, 3-locular, ellipsoid to narrowly so, slightly truncate, 2.7–4 × 1–1.5 mm, sometimes exceeding inner tepals but usually not outer series. |
3-locular or infrequently pseudo-3-locular, oblate to narrowly ovoid, 3.5–4(–4.5) mm, equal to or exceeding perianth. |
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Seeds | yellowish, widely ellipsoid to ovoid, 0.26–0.49, not tailed. |
dark amber, oblate to ellipsoid, 0.6–0.8 mm. |
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2n | = 27–37, 58–81, 108–115. |
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Juncus bufonius |
Juncus arcticus |
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Phenology | Flowering and fruiting spring–early fall. | |||||||||
Habitat | Moist soils in meadows, along lakeshores or stream banks, ditches, or roadsides, especially frequent in drawdown areas, usually in open sites and often becoming weedy | |||||||||
Distribution |
AK; AL; AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NL; NS; NT; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT; Greenland; nearly worldwide
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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
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Discussion | Nearly worldwide, Juncus bufonius is found essentially throughout North America except north of the Alaskan and Canadian tTaiga. Juncus bufonius is a highly polymorphic complex that is poorly understood systematically. Insufficient evidence exists upon which to base the segregation of the plethora of taxa that have been recognized out of this group in the past. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 22. | FNA vol. 22. | ||||||||
Parent taxa | Juncaceae > Juncus > subg. Poiophylli | Juncaceae > Juncus > subg. Genuini | ||||||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||||||
Synonyms | J. bufonius var. congestus, J. bufonius var. halophilus, J. bufonius var. hybridus, J. bufonius var. occidentalis, J. bufonius var. ranarius, J. congestus, J. ranarius | |||||||||
Name authority | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 328. (1753) | Willdenow: Sp. Pl. 2: 206. (1799) | ||||||||
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