Cyperaceae taxon details
Carex brunnipes Reznicek
1678202 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:1678202)
accepted
Species
terrestrial
Reznicek, A. A. (1986). The Taxonomy of <i>Carex</i> sect. <i>Hymenochlaenae</i> (Cyperaceae) in Mexico and Central America. <em>Systematic Botany.</em> 11(1): 56-87., available online at https://doi.org/10.2307/2418947
page(s): 82 [details] Available for editors
[request]
page(s): 82 [details] Available for editors
[request]
Holotype MEXU, geounit Mexico Central
Holotype MEXU, geounit Mexico Central [details]
Description Cespitosas, sin rizomas reptantes. Tallos 60-120 cm, robustos, obtusamente trígonos, lisos; vainas basales...
Description Plants cespitose, with short rhizomes; roots pale brown, not densely felted with root hairs; fertile culms 35–105 cm...
Description Cespitosas, sin rizomas reptantes. Tallos 60-120 cm, robustos, obtusamente trígonos, lisos; vainas basales pardo-negruzcas. Hojas casi tan largas como los tallos, 3-6 mm de ancho, aplanadas, verde oscuro; lígula 2-7.5 mm, casi tan larga como ancha. Espigas 4-7, las más grandes 20-30 x 4-5 mm, las terminales 1-3 estaminadas, las inferiores 3-4 pistilada, péndulas en pedúnculos filiformes, largos, lisos, solitarios; bráctea más baja más larga que la espiga, foliiforme, con una vaina de por lo menos 30 mm. Glumas pistiladas más cortas que los utrículos, ovadas, obtusas, pardo-rojizas, la nervadura media pálida, los márgenes escasamente hialinos. Utrículos 2.5-3.5 mm, elipsoides, verdosos y pardo-rojizo oscuro, glabros, ascendentes, con nervaduras delgadas, contraídos abruptamente en un rostro, el rostro c. 0.5 mm, liso, 2-dentado. Estigmas 3. [details]
Description Plants cespitose, with short rhizomes; roots pale brown, not densely felted with root hairs; fertile culms 35–105 cm...
Description Plants cespitose, with short rhizomes; roots pale brown, not densely felted with root hairs; fertile culms 35–105 cm tall, trigonous, smooth, with glabrous, brown bladeless basal sheaths. Leaves 4–8, mostly basal; blades 8.5–40 cm long, 3–6.5 mm wide, plicate, glabrous, the margins granular, the widest leaves 4.2–6.5 mm wide; leaf sheaths 4.5–13.5 cm long, tightly enveloping culms, glabrous, green or sometimes lightly red-tinged at base on upper sheaths; inner band of sheaths glabrous pale brown to hyaline, red-dotted near apex, the apex concave; ligules 1.9–5.6(–7.5) mm long, rounded to acute, the free portion +- prominent, hyaline and red-dotted. Vegetative shoots 16–25 mm tall; leaves 5–7, similar to those of fertile culms; pseudoculms ca. 1.6–5.7 cm tall. Inflorescences 11–61 cm long, with the upper spikes overlapping and the lowest two spikes 4.5–21 cm distant; spikes single at nodes, with all but the upper pendulous on filiform, flexuous, smooth peduncles; lowermost spikes with peduncles 2.5–14.5 cm long, the uppermost lateral spikes sessile; lowermost bracts with blades 8–21.5 cm long and 1.5–4.8 mm wide and sheaths 2.0–10.5 cm long, the uppermost bracts much reduced. Spikes 4–6, the upper 1–3 staminate, the rest androgynous or the lowermost rarely pistillate. Terminal spikes 2.8–4.7 cm long, 2–3.8 mm wide, 70–180-flowered; peduncles 1.2–13 mm long. Lateral staminate spikes if present, 1–2.6 cm long, ca. 30–80-flowered, sessile or nearly so; lateral androgynous spikes 1.9–4.5 cm long; staminate portion (0–)0.3–1.7 cm long, 5–80-flowered; pistillate portion 1.6–3.8 cm long, 4–6.7 mm wide, 40–110-flowered. Pistillate scales 2.2–4.1 mm long, 1–1.7 mm wide, obovate, obtuse to acute, dark reddish brown to dark purplish black with broad hyaline margins and green center, 1-veined. Staminate scales 3.1–5.8 mm long, 1.1–1.9 mm wide, oblong to obovate, obtuse to acute, castaneous to reddish purple with broad hyaline margins and stramineous center, often red-streaked or red-dotted, 1(–3)-veined. Perigynia 2.2–3.3(–3.7) mm long, 0.9–1.3 mm wide, spreading, trigonous with +- flat, ovate sides, green, red-dotted, purple-mottled or sometimes entirely purple on distal half, glabrous, sessile, 5–11-veined with 2 veins prominent and the rest faint, contracted into a beak; beaks 0.3–0.8 mm long, green and purple-mottled, or purple, the apex obscurely bidentulate with teeth up to 0.3 mm long. Achene 1.6–2.1 mm long, 0.8–1.1 mm wide, trigonous with +- flat, obovate sides, loosely enveloped by the perigynium, pale brown, short-stipitate. Styles withering; stigmas 3. Anthers 3, 1.1–3.7 mm long. [details]
Cyperaceae Working Group. (2026). [see How to cite]. Global Cyperaceae Database. Carex brunnipes Reznicek. Accessed at: https://www.cyperaceae.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1678202 on 2026-08-29
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Nomenclature
original description
Reznicek, A. A. (1986). The Taxonomy of <i>Carex</i> sect. <i>Hymenochlaenae</i> (Cyperaceae) in Mexico and Central America. <em>Systematic Botany.</em> 11(1): 56-87., available online at https://doi.org/10.2307/2418947
page(s): 82 [details] Available for editors [request]
page(s): 82 [details] Available for editors
[request]Other
additional source
Chater, A. O. (1994). <i>Carex</i> L. In: G. Davidse, M. Sousa Sánchez & A. O. Chater (eds.) Flora Mesoamericana. Vol. 6: Alismataceae a Cyperaceae, 464-473., available online at https://legacy.tropicos.org/Project/FM
page(s): 471 [details]
page(s): 471 [details]
Present Inaccurate Introduced: alien Containing type locality
Holotype MEXU, geounit Mexico Central [details]
From editor or global species database
Additional information Carex brunnipes grows in wet meadows, streambanks, and moist clearings in coniferous forests at 2900-3100 m in central Mexico, and is disjunct to western Guatemala. Fruiting occurs from July through October. The epithet brunnipes, "brown-footed," refers to the characteristic brown basal sheaths of this species. All specimens reported by Hermann (1974) and Gonzalez (1982) as C. conspecta are referred here except for the holotype of C. conspecta. Carex brunnipes, although still a rare plant, is the most frequently collected and probably the most wide-ranging member of the C. conspecta complex. [details]
Description Cespitosas, sin rizomas reptantes. Tallos 60-120 cm, robustos, obtusamente trígonos, lisos; vainas basales pardo-negruzcas. Hojas casi tan largas como los tallos, 3-6 mm de ancho, aplanadas, verde oscuro; lígula 2-7.5 mm, casi tan larga como ancha. Espigas 4-7, las más grandes 20-30 x 4-5 mm, las terminales 1-3 estaminadas, las inferiores 3-4 pistilada, péndulas en pedúnculos filiformes, largos, lisos, solitarios; bráctea más baja más larga que la espiga, foliiforme, con una vaina de por lo menos 30 mm. Glumas pistiladas más cortas que los utrículos, ovadas, obtusas, pardo-rojizas, la nervadura media pálida, los márgenes escasamente hialinos. Utrículos 2.5-3.5 mm, elipsoides, verdosos y pardo-rojizo oscuro, glabros, ascendentes, con nervaduras delgadas, contraídos abruptamente en un rostro, el rostro c. 0.5 mm, liso, 2-dentado. Estigmas 3. [details]
Description Plants cespitose, with short rhizomes; roots pale brown, not densely felted with root hairs; fertile culms 35–105 cm tall, trigonous, smooth, with glabrous, brown bladeless basal sheaths. Leaves 4–8, mostly basal; blades 8.5–40 cm long, 3–6.5 mm wide, plicate, glabrous, the margins granular, the widest leaves 4.2–6.5 mm wide; leaf sheaths 4.5–13.5 cm long, tightly enveloping culms, glabrous, green or sometimes lightly red-tinged at base on upper sheaths; inner band of sheaths glabrous pale brown to hyaline, red-dotted near apex, the apex concave; ligules 1.9–5.6(–7.5) mm long, rounded to acute, the free portion +- prominent, hyaline and red-dotted. Vegetative shoots 16–25 mm tall; leaves 5–7, similar to those of fertile culms; pseudoculms ca. 1.6–5.7 cm tall. Inflorescences 11–61 cm long, with the upper spikes overlapping and the lowest two spikes 4.5–21 cm distant; spikes single at nodes, with all but the upper pendulous on filiform, flexuous, smooth peduncles; lowermost spikes with peduncles 2.5–14.5 cm long, the uppermost lateral spikes sessile; lowermost bracts with blades 8–21.5 cm long and 1.5–4.8 mm wide and sheaths 2.0–10.5 cm long, the uppermost bracts much reduced. Spikes 4–6, the upper 1–3 staminate, the rest androgynous or the lowermost rarely pistillate. Terminal spikes 2.8–4.7 cm long, 2–3.8 mm wide, 70–180-flowered; peduncles 1.2–13 mm long. Lateral staminate spikes if present, 1–2.6 cm long, ca. 30–80-flowered, sessile or nearly so; lateral androgynous spikes 1.9–4.5 cm long; staminate portion (0–)0.3–1.7 cm long, 5–80-flowered; pistillate portion 1.6–3.8 cm long, 4–6.7 mm wide, 40–110-flowered. Pistillate scales 2.2–4.1 mm long, 1–1.7 mm wide, obovate, obtuse to acute, dark reddish brown to dark purplish black with broad hyaline margins and green center, 1-veined. Staminate scales 3.1–5.8 mm long, 1.1–1.9 mm wide, oblong to obovate, obtuse to acute, castaneous to reddish purple with broad hyaline margins and stramineous center, often red-streaked or red-dotted, 1(–3)-veined. Perigynia 2.2–3.3(–3.7) mm long, 0.9–1.3 mm wide, spreading, trigonous with +- flat, ovate sides, green, red-dotted, purple-mottled or sometimes entirely purple on distal half, glabrous, sessile, 5–11-veined with 2 veins prominent and the rest faint, contracted into a beak; beaks 0.3–0.8 mm long, green and purple-mottled, or purple, the apex obscurely bidentulate with teeth up to 0.3 mm long. Achene 1.6–2.1 mm long, 0.8–1.1 mm wide, trigonous with +- flat, obovate sides, loosely enveloped by the perigynium, pale brown, short-stipitate. Styles withering; stigmas 3. Anthers 3, 1.1–3.7 mm long. [details]
