Cyperaceae taxon details
Carex caxinensis F.J.Herm.
1678259 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:1678259)
accepted
Species
terrestrial
Hermann, F. J. (1971). New Species of <i>Carex</i> from Mexico and Guatemala. <em>Brittonia.</em> 23(2): 144-148., available online at https://doi.org/10.2307/2805430
page(s): 146 [details] Available for editors
[request]
page(s): 146 [details] Available for editors
[request]
Holotype F 0361338, geounit Guatemala
, Note The holotype of this species was a paratype of...
Holotype F 0361338, geounit Guatemala [details]
From editor or global species database
Type material The holotype of this species was a paratype of C. tojquianensis in sect. Fecundae (Hermann 1971), and the only other collection known was a paratype of C. venosivaginata. [details]
Description Cespitosas, con rizomas cortamente reptantes. Tallos 40-60 cm, obtusamente trígonos, lisos; vainas basales rojizas. Hojas...
Description Plants loosely cespitose, with short-creeping rhizomes; roots pale brown, not densely felted with root hairs; fertile culms...
Description Cespitosas, con rizomas cortamente reptantes. Tallos 40-60 cm, obtusamente trígonos, lisos; vainas basales rojizas. Hojas mucho más cortas que los tallos, 3-4 mm de ancho, aplanadas pero acanaladas cerca del ápice, verdes; lígula casi tan larga como ancha. Espigas 5-7, 25-45 x 4-6 mm, todas estaminadas arriba y pistiladas abajo, la más baja remota y péndula en pedúnculos filiformes y solitarios, largos, las superiores traslapadas; bráctea más baja casi tan larga como la espiga, foliiforme, con una vaina c. 40 mm. Glumas pistiladas del mismo tamaño que los utrículos, ovado-lanceoladas, acuminadas, pardo-rojizas, la nervadura media pálida. Utrículos 3-4 mm, elipsoides, trígonos, pardo-rojizos o pardo-verdoso pálido, glabros, marcadamente nervados, contraídos más o menos abruptamente en un rostro, el rostro liso, truncado. Anteras 2.6-4 mm. Estigmas 3. [details]
Description Plants loosely cespitose, with short-creeping rhizomes; roots pale brown, not densely felted with root hairs; fertile culms...
Description Plants loosely cespitose, with short-creeping rhizomes; roots pale brown, not densely felted with root hairs; fertile culms 19-60 cm tall, trigonous, smooth, with glabrous, red to purple, bladeless basal sheaths with stramineous veins. Leaves 7-11, mostly basal; blades 14-30 cm long, 1.1-4.3 mm wide, plicate but channeled near tip, coriaceous, glabrous, or antrorsely scabrous on main veins, the margins antrorsely scabrous distally, the widest leaves 2.3-4.3 mm wide; leaf sheaths 2.4-7.2 mm long, tightly enveloping culms, glabrous, green above, purple-tinged near base; inner band of sheaths purple-tinged except for the hyaline, friable apex, glabrous, the apex concave; ligules 0.5-2.1 mm long rounded or emarginate, the free portion thickened, purple. Vegetative shoots ca. 10-20 cm tall; leaves 5-8, similar to those of fertile culms; pseudoculms ca. 1.5-4 cm tall. Inflorescences 13.5-46.5 cm long, with the upper spikes overlapping and the lowest 2 spikes 7-25.5 cm distant; spikes single at nodes, with all but the upper pendulous on filiform, flexuous, smooth peduncles; lowermost spikes with peduncles 5.7-10 cm long, the uppermost lateral spikes sessile or nearly so; lowermost bracts with blades 3.6-10.2 cm long and 0.9-3.2 mm wide and sheaths 2.6-6.2 cm long, red-tinged at base, the uppermost bracts much reduced. Spikes 4-7, androgynous (2 reduced, apparently wholly staminate spikes below the terminal androgynous spike on the holotype are here regarded as abnormalities and have not been taken into account in this description). Terminal spikes 2.2-4.1 cm long; staminate portion 1.3-2.1 cm long, 2-4 mm wide, 15-50-flowered; pistillate portion 1.1-2 cm long, ca. 5-6 mm wide, ca. 10-30-flowered; peduncles 2.5-8 mm long. Lateral spikes 2.1-4.4 cm long; staminate portion 0.3-1.2 cm long, ca. 3-20-flowered; pistillate portion 1.2-4.1 cm long, ca. 10-45-flowered. Pistillate scales 3.9-5.2 mm long, (0.9-)1.4-2.1 mm wide, lanceolate to oblong, acute to acuminate or with a short, smooth awn up to 0.4(-1.4) mm long, glabrous, dark reddish purple with narrow, hyaline margins and coriaceous green center, 3(-5)-veined. Staminate scales 4.4-7.5 mm long, 1.2-1.8 mm wide, oblanceolate to narrowly obovate, acuminate, glabrous, pale reddish purple with narrow, hyaline margins and green center, 3-veined. Perigynia 2.9-3.7 mm long, 0.9-1.5 mm wide, ascending, trigonous with convex, elliptic sides, strongly purple-tinged on proximal half, green distally, glabrous, broadly short-stipitate, 13-18-veined with 2 veins prominent and the rest faint, contracted into a beak; beaks 0.3-0.5 mm long, green or purple-tinged, glabrous, the apex truncate or slightly concave in side view, +- thickened, purple. Achene 1.7-2.3 mm long, 0.9-1.1 mm wide, trigonous with convex, oblong sides, tightly enveloped by the perigynium, pale brown, short-stipitate. Styles withering; stigmas 3. Anthers 3, 2.6-4 mm long. [details]
Cyperaceae Working Group. (2026). [see How to cite]. Global Cyperaceae Database. Carex caxinensis F.J.Herm.. Accessed at: https://www.cyperaceae.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1678259 on 2026-09-05
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Nomenclature
original description
Hermann, F. J. (1971). New Species of <i>Carex</i> from Mexico and Guatemala. <em>Brittonia.</em> 23(2): 144-148., available online at https://doi.org/10.2307/2805430
page(s): 146 [details] Available for editors [request]
page(s): 146 [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]
additional source Hermann, F. J. (1974). Manual of the genus <i>Carex</i> in Mexico and Central America. IV, pp. 219 p. Forest Service, U.S.Dept. Agric., Washington.
page(s): 144 [details] Available for editors [request]
additional source 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): 66 [details] Available for editors [request]
page(s): 471 [details]
additional source Hermann, F. J. (1974). Manual of the genus <i>Carex</i> in Mexico and Central America. IV, pp. 219 p. Forest Service, U.S.Dept. Agric., Washington.
page(s): 144 [details] Available for editors
[request]additional source 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): 66 [details] Available for editors
[request]
Present Inaccurate Introduced: alien Containing type locality
Holotype F 0361338, geounit Guatemala [details]
From editor or global species database
Additional information Carex caxinensis es conocida sólo por el ejemplar tipo. [details]Comparison Carex caxinensis is a somewhat isolated species among Mexican and Central American Hymenochlaenae. Superficially, it resembles C. pertenuis, but in addition to the differences noted in the key, C. caxinensis has perigynia that areabruptly contracted to a beak, coriaceous leaves, and roots not densely felted with root hairs. [details]
Description Cespitosas, con rizomas cortamente reptantes. Tallos 40-60 cm, obtusamente trígonos, lisos; vainas basales rojizas. Hojas mucho más cortas que los tallos, 3-4 mm de ancho, aplanadas pero acanaladas cerca del ápice, verdes; lígula casi tan larga como ancha. Espigas 5-7, 25-45 x 4-6 mm, todas estaminadas arriba y pistiladas abajo, la más baja remota y péndula en pedúnculos filiformes y solitarios, largos, las superiores traslapadas; bráctea más baja casi tan larga como la espiga, foliiforme, con una vaina c. 40 mm. Glumas pistiladas del mismo tamaño que los utrículos, ovado-lanceoladas, acuminadas, pardo-rojizas, la nervadura media pálida. Utrículos 3-4 mm, elipsoides, trígonos, pardo-rojizos o pardo-verdoso pálido, glabros, marcadamente nervados, contraídos más o menos abruptamente en un rostro, el rostro liso, truncado. Anteras 2.6-4 mm. Estigmas 3. [details]
Description Plants loosely cespitose, with short-creeping rhizomes; roots pale brown, not densely felted with root hairs; fertile culms 19-60 cm tall, trigonous, smooth, with glabrous, red to purple, bladeless basal sheaths with stramineous veins. Leaves 7-11, mostly basal; blades 14-30 cm long, 1.1-4.3 mm wide, plicate but channeled near tip, coriaceous, glabrous, or antrorsely scabrous on main veins, the margins antrorsely scabrous distally, the widest leaves 2.3-4.3 mm wide; leaf sheaths 2.4-7.2 mm long, tightly enveloping culms, glabrous, green above, purple-tinged near base; inner band of sheaths purple-tinged except for the hyaline, friable apex, glabrous, the apex concave; ligules 0.5-2.1 mm long rounded or emarginate, the free portion thickened, purple. Vegetative shoots ca. 10-20 cm tall; leaves 5-8, similar to those of fertile culms; pseudoculms ca. 1.5-4 cm tall. Inflorescences 13.5-46.5 cm long, with the upper spikes overlapping and the lowest 2 spikes 7-25.5 cm distant; spikes single at nodes, with all but the upper pendulous on filiform, flexuous, smooth peduncles; lowermost spikes with peduncles 5.7-10 cm long, the uppermost lateral spikes sessile or nearly so; lowermost bracts with blades 3.6-10.2 cm long and 0.9-3.2 mm wide and sheaths 2.6-6.2 cm long, red-tinged at base, the uppermost bracts much reduced. Spikes 4-7, androgynous (2 reduced, apparently wholly staminate spikes below the terminal androgynous spike on the holotype are here regarded as abnormalities and have not been taken into account in this description). Terminal spikes 2.2-4.1 cm long; staminate portion 1.3-2.1 cm long, 2-4 mm wide, 15-50-flowered; pistillate portion 1.1-2 cm long, ca. 5-6 mm wide, ca. 10-30-flowered; peduncles 2.5-8 mm long. Lateral spikes 2.1-4.4 cm long; staminate portion 0.3-1.2 cm long, ca. 3-20-flowered; pistillate portion 1.2-4.1 cm long, ca. 10-45-flowered. Pistillate scales 3.9-5.2 mm long, (0.9-)1.4-2.1 mm wide, lanceolate to oblong, acute to acuminate or with a short, smooth awn up to 0.4(-1.4) mm long, glabrous, dark reddish purple with narrow, hyaline margins and coriaceous green center, 3(-5)-veined. Staminate scales 4.4-7.5 mm long, 1.2-1.8 mm wide, oblanceolate to narrowly obovate, acuminate, glabrous, pale reddish purple with narrow, hyaline margins and green center, 3-veined. Perigynia 2.9-3.7 mm long, 0.9-1.5 mm wide, ascending, trigonous with convex, elliptic sides, strongly purple-tinged on proximal half, green distally, glabrous, broadly short-stipitate, 13-18-veined with 2 veins prominent and the rest faint, contracted into a beak; beaks 0.3-0.5 mm long, green or purple-tinged, glabrous, the apex truncate or slightly concave in side view, +- thickened, purple. Achene 1.7-2.3 mm long, 0.9-1.1 mm wide, trigonous with convex, oblong sides, tightly enveloped by the perigynium, pale brown, short-stipitate. Styles withering; stigmas 3. Anthers 3, 2.6-4 mm long. [details]
Ecology Carex caxinensis occurs on bluffs in the Sierra de los Cuchumatanes of Guatemala from 2400 to 3700 m. Mature fruit occurs from early July to August. [details]
Habitat Laderas rocosas. [details]
Type material The holotype of this species was a paratype of C. tojquianensis in sect. Fecundae (Hermann 1971), and the only other collection known was a paratype of C. venosivaginata. [details]
To Biodiversity Heritage Library (3 publications)
To Field Museum Herbarium (Carex caxinensis F. J. Herm. F1128684 paratype 1)
To Field Museum Herbarium (Carex caxinensis F. J. Herm. F1139387 holotype 1)
To International Plant Names Index (IPNI)
To Plants of the World Online
To Field Museum Herbarium (Carex caxinensis F. J. Herm. F1128684 paratype 1)
To Field Museum Herbarium (Carex caxinensis F. J. Herm. F1139387 holotype 1)
To International Plant Names Index (IPNI)
To Plants of the World Online
From editor or global species database
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