Cyperaceae taxon details
Carex arizonica Licher, G.Rink & Reznicek
1677236 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:1677236)
accepted
Species
terrestrial
Licher, M.; Rink, G.; Reznicek, A. A. (2018). <i>Carex arizonica</i>, a new Southwestern species in section <i>Paniceae</i> (Cyperaceae). <em>Rhodora.</em> 120(981): 52-64., available online at https://doi.org/10.3119/17-08
page(s): 52 [details]
page(s): 52 [details]
Holotype ASC
00113813, geounit Arizona
00113813, geounit Arizona
Holotype ASC
00113813, geounit Arizona [details]
00113813, geounit Arizona [details]
Description Plants perennial, colonial to loosely clustered, the culms arising singly or a few together from long rhizomes; rhizomes...
Description Plants perennial, colonial to loosely clustered, the culms arising singly or a few together from long rhizomes; rhizomes 0.7–2.0 mm in diameter, from pale to light brown, rarely tinted purplish red. CULMS 10–65 cm tall, longer to shorter than the leaves, thin, stiff, erect to arching, bluntly to sharply triangular, sometimes minutely scabrous on the angles. LEAF blades 3.0–6.0(–7.5) mm wide, 3–46 cm long, green, M-shaped, the proximal blades occasionally becoming flattened with age; sheaths ca. 1.8–10.5 cm long, 6 loosely enveloping culms, glabrous, yellow green, turning brownish with age, the interveinal areas whitish, with sparse scattered septa; sheath inner band glabrous, whitish hyaline to pale brown (with age), delicate and friable, apex truncate to 6 deeply concave; ligules truncate to acute and up to 8 mm long, variable in length and longest on the distal leaves, the free portion whitish to brown, 6 entire, up to 0.6 mm long. INFLORESCENCE with lateral pistillate spikes and a terminal, usually staminate spike; (30–)50–100% of flowering culms in a population have an additional solitary (rarely several) basal or near-basal pistillate spike; basal spike(s) (1.3–)1.8–3.3(–4.5) cm long on a slender peduncle (3.5–)6.0–12.0(–16.5) cm long, arising from the axil of the distal leaf near the base of the culm; primary cauline inflorescence 2–32 cm long, with one terminal, usually staminate spike and 2–4(–5) lateral, well-separated, erect to ascending pistillate spikes; terminal spike 15–23(–28) mm long, 2–3 mm wide, occasionally with both staminate and pistillate flowers in the same spike, or rarely wholly pistillate; lateral pistillate spikes 5–33 mm long, 3.5–6.5 mm wide, short peduncled to sessile; sheaths of lowermost non-basal inflorescence bracts 0.3–2.3 cm long; the uppermost bracts much reduced, the blade of the lowermost bract leaf-like, 3–5 mm wide, 1.9–16.4 cm long, usually shorter than but occasionally as long as the inflorescence, 0.29?1 (average 0.57) times as long as the inflorescence. PISTILLATE SCALES shorter than to as long as the perigynia and clasping the base, ovate, whitish with brown flecking, or brown, with a pale to bright green 3-nerved midsection, with narrow to broad hyaline margins; apex rounded-obtuse to mucronate, the proximal scales with scabrous awns to 2.5(–3.3) mm long. PERIGYNIA 2.2–3.4 mm long, 0.9–1.8 mm wide, ascending, whitish green (rarely turning yellowish at the base with maturity), minutely nerved on both sides, with stronger, green, marginal keels, obtusely trigonous in cross section, inflated, obovoid, rounded and spongy-thickened below, abruptly contracted to a short beak, papillose near the beak, rarely lacking a beak; beak truncate with orifice entire and bent to one side. ANTHERS 2.0–2.5 mm long. STIGMAS mostly 3, occasionally 2. ACHENES 1.4–1.8(–2.0) mm long, (0.7–)1.0–1.5 mm wide, obovoid, bluntly trigonous, minutely reticulate, with the
intervening flat surfaces lacking prominent papillae. [details]
intervening flat surfaces lacking prominent papillae. [details]
Cyperaceae Working Group. (2025). [see How to cite]. Global Cyperaceae Database. Carex arizonica Licher, G.Rink & Reznicek. Accessed at: https://www.cyperaceae.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1677236 on 2025-09-13
Date
action
by
2024-12-10 11:47:54Z
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db_admin
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Nomenclature
original description
Licher, M.; Rink, G.; Reznicek, A. A. (2018). <i>Carex arizonica</i>, a new Southwestern species in section <i>Paniceae</i> (Cyperaceae). <em>Rhodora.</em> 120(981): 52-64., available online at https://doi.org/10.3119/17-08
page(s): 52 [details]
basis of record Plants of the World Online (POWO). , available online at https://powo.science.kew.org/ [details]
page(s): 52 [details]
basis of record Plants of the World Online (POWO). , available online at https://powo.science.kew.org/ [details]
Present Inaccurate Introduced: alien Containing type locality
Holotype ASC
00113813, geounit Arizona [details]
00113813, geounit Arizona [details]
From editor or global species database
Description Plants perennial, colonial to loosely clustered, the culms arising singly or a few together from long rhizomes; rhizomes 0.7–2.0 mm in diameter, from pale to light brown, rarely tinted purplish red. CULMS 10–65 cm tall, longer to shorter than the leaves, thin, stiff, erect to arching, bluntly to sharply triangular, sometimes minutely scabrous on the angles. LEAF blades 3.0–6.0(–7.5) mm wide, 3–46 cm long, green, M-shaped, the proximal blades occasionally becoming flattened with age; sheaths ca. 1.8–10.5 cm long, 6 loosely enveloping culms, glabrous, yellow green, turning brownish with age, the interveinal areas whitish, with sparse scattered septa; sheath inner band glabrous, whitish hyaline to pale brown (with age), delicate and friable, apex truncate to 6 deeply concave; ligules truncate to acute and up to 8 mm long, variable in length and longest on the distal leaves, the free portion whitish to brown, 6 entire, up to 0.6 mm long. INFLORESCENCE with lateral pistillate spikes and a terminal, usually staminate spike; (30–)50–100% of flowering culms in a population have an additional solitary (rarely several) basal or near-basal pistillate spike; basal spike(s) (1.3–)1.8–3.3(–4.5) cm long on a slender peduncle (3.5–)6.0–12.0(–16.5) cm long, arising from the axil of the distal leaf near the base of the culm; primary cauline inflorescence 2–32 cm long, with one terminal, usually staminate spike and 2–4(–5) lateral, well-separated, erect to ascending pistillate spikes; terminal spike 15–23(–28) mm long, 2–3 mm wide, occasionally with both staminate and pistillate flowers in the same spike, or rarely wholly pistillate; lateral pistillate spikes 5–33 mm long, 3.5–6.5 mm wide, short peduncled to sessile; sheaths of lowermost non-basal inflorescence bracts 0.3–2.3 cm long; the uppermost bracts much reduced, the blade of the lowermost bract leaf-like, 3–5 mm wide, 1.9–16.4 cm long, usually shorter than but occasionally as long as the inflorescence, 0.29?1 (average 0.57) times as long as the inflorescence. PISTILLATE SCALES shorter than to as long as the perigynia and clasping the base, ovate, whitish with brown flecking, or brown, with a pale to bright green 3-nerved midsection, with narrow to broad hyaline margins; apex rounded-obtuse to mucronate, the proximal scales with scabrous awns to 2.5(–3.3) mm long. PERIGYNIA 2.2–3.4 mm long, 0.9–1.8 mm wide, ascending, whitish green (rarely turning yellowish at the base with maturity), minutely nerved on both sides, with stronger, green, marginal keels, obtusely trigonous in cross section, inflated, obovoid, rounded and spongy-thickened below, abruptly contracted to a short beak, papillose near the beak, rarely lacking a beak; beak truncate with orifice entire and bent to one side. ANTHERS 2.0–2.5 mm long. STIGMAS mostly 3, occasionally 2. ACHENES 1.4–1.8(–2.0) mm long, (0.7–)1.0–1.5 mm wide, obovoid, bluntly trigonous, minutely reticulate, with the intervening flat surfaces lacking prominent papillae. [details]
