Rhynchospora harperi
Rhynchospora punctata
Harper's beaksedge
dotted beaksedge
erect to excurved, leafybased, narrowly linear, ± terete.
erect or ascending, leafy, trigonous, slender.
shorter than culm;
blades ascending, narrowly linear, proximally flat or margins slightly involute, 0.5–1(–2) mm wide, distally canaliculate, apex trigonous, tapering, subulate.
all exceeded by culm;
basal blades spreading, often curled, distal longer, all proximally flat, 3–5 mm wide, apex trigonous, subulately tapering.
spikelet clusters 1–3, laterals 0–2, all turbinate to hemispheric, terminal internode usually excurved; leafy bracts setaceous, overtopping inflorescence.
clusters 3–5, proximalmost distant, longest pedunculate, fascicles broadly turbinate to hemispheric; leafy bracts of distal groups mostly exceeded by inflorescence.
redbrown, lanceoloid, 5–7 mm, apex acute;
fertile scales lanceolate, (2.5–)4–5 mm, apex acute to acuminate;
midrib paralleled by several indistinct ribs, excurrent as short awns.
lanceovoid, (3.5–)4–5 mm;
fertile scales broadly ovate to ± orbiculate, cupulate, rounded, 3 mm, apex apiculate to cuspidate, midrib excurrent.
bristles 6, reaching from mid tubercle to beyond tip.
perianth bristles 6, overtopping tubercle (or at least its base), antrorsely barbellate.
3(–4) per spikelet, 2.1–2.5 mm;
stipe and receptacle 0.2–0.3 mm, sparsely setose and setulose;
body glossy, brown with pale center, obovoid-lenticular, 1.1–1.5 × 1–1.1 mm, surfaces finely longitudinally lined, variably low papillatecancellate, also often transversely with wavy lines of dark dots;
tubercle flattened, triangular-subulate, (0.8–)0.9–1(–1.1) mm, setulose-ciliate.
1–3 per spikelet, 2.3–3 mm;
body brown, strongly compressed proximally, biconvex distally, broadly obovoid, 1.8–2.2 × 1.5 mm;
surfaces strongly transversely rugose, intervals with rows of narrow, vertical alveolae;
tubercle triangular, flat, 1 mm, base lunate, capping fruit apex, apiculate.
Rhynchospora harperi
Rhynchospora punctata
Rhynchospora harperi is most abundant in a very special habitat referred to here as the “Hypericum pond.” These are typically shallow ponds in pine savannas, frequently ringed by stands of Nyssa, Taxodium, Ilex, and Cyrilla, but most of the pond itself is dominated by one or more myriandrous shrubby Hypericum species. Here R. harperi is distinguished from other species by the often abrupt bend of its ultimate internode.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Of conservation concern.
Rhynchospora punctata is similar to R. harveyi and R. compressa in its preference for more upland sites. Like R. compressa, R. punctata often has many imperfectly formed fruits, suggestive of hybrid origin.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
MD Biodiversity
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
