Species: Carex leptalea
Bristly-stalked Sedge
Species
Encyclopedia of Puget Sound
Classification
Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Anthophyta
Class
Monocotyledoneae
Order
Cyperales
Family
Cyperaceae
Genus
Carex
NatureServe
Classification
Other Global Common Names
Little Bog Sedge - bristly-stalked sedge - carex à tiges grêles
Informal Taxonomy
Plants, Vascular - Flowering Plants - Sedge Family
Formal Taxonomy
Plantae - Anthophyta - Monocotyledoneae - Cyperales - Cyperaceae - Carex
Ecology and Life History
Short General Description
A slender, pale green sedge with the flowering stems taller than the leaves, bearing a single spike.
Reproduction Comments
Staminate flowers above pistillate on the same spike. Cyperaceae are wind-pollinated with the exception of Dichromena. The inflated perigynium allows Carex seeds to float for long periods of time (2 days to over 12 months, depending on the species), and various species are also dispersed by ants, birds, and mammals (Ridley 1930).
Ecology Comments
Tolerances inferred from habitat.
Conservation Status
NatureServe Global Status Rank
G5
Global Status Last Reviewed
1995-03-16
Global Status Last Changed
1984-02-29
Distribution
Conservation Status Map
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Global Range
Labrador to Alaska, south to central Florida, Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, northeastern Utah, Idaho, Oregon, and California. Not reported from Kansas and Nebraska. Carex leptalea ssp. harperi is found in the southeastern portion of the range, and C. leptalea ssp. pacifica occurs in British Columbia and southernmost Alaska. C. leptalea has the widest geographic range of any North America sedge (FNA 2002).