Flora of North America species comparison

erect to arching, leafy, linear to filiform, nearly triangular.

spreading to erect, leafy, obtusely triangular.

ascending, overtopped by culm;

blades flat, linear to filiform, to 1.8 mm wide, apex distally involute, trigonous, setaceous.

often exceeding inflorescences;

blades narrowly linear, proximally flat, 1–3 mm wide, apex trigonous, tapering.

terminal and axillary, spikelet clusters 2–4, widely spaced, the lowest near plant base;

clusters compact, broadly turbinate to hemispheric, to 1.5 cm wide; leafy bracts curved, setaceous, slightly to greatly overtopping subtended compounds.

terminal and axillary, clusters of 1–5 corymbs; leafy bracts much exceeding corymbs.

dark brown, lance-ellipsoid, 2–3 mm;

fertile scales 2 mm, apex acute, midrib short-excurrent or not.

few to several, on ascending, stiff, short-to-elongate branches, red-brown to brown, lanceoloid, (5–)6–10 mm, apex acuminate;

fertile scales many, ovate, shallowly convex, 5 mm, apex acuminate;

midrib short-excurrent or not.

perianth bristles 6, ± as long as fruit body, retrorsely barbellate.

perianth absent.

mostly 2 per spikelet, 1.5–1.9 mm;

body brown with yellowish center, ellipsoid, lenticular distal to short stipe, 1–1.3 × 0.6–0.8 mm;

tubercle triangular, 0.3–0.6 mm, distinctly shorter than fruit body.

1.5 mm;

body dark brown to black, tumidly lenticular, nearly orbicular, 0.8–0.9 × 0.6–0.7 mm, margins grooved, discontinuous with tubercle;

surfaces transversely wavyrugose, ridges of contiguous rows of vertical, linear, raised cells;

tubercle broad, low triangular, 0.2–0.3 mm, crustaceous, base capping fruit summit, raised at ends, apex shortacuminate.