Carex sect. Spirostachyae
Encyclopedia
Carex sect. Spirostachyae is a section
of the genus Carex
, containing 38 species of sedge
. Species in Carex sect. Spirostachyae share a suite of features, including the short internode
s of the primary rhizome
s, the presence of an antiligule, the leaf-like, sheathing bract
at the base of the inflorescence, the presence of three stigmas
in female flowers, and the shape of the seed
s.
The section is composed of two subsections, with differing edaphic
preferences; subsection Elatae comprises species that lives on acid
ic soils, while those in subsection Spirostachyae live on basic
or ultramafic soils. The two sections also differ morphologically
, with species in subsection Elatae having wider leaves
, thicker stems
and larger spikes, the lowest of which may hang downwards.
The centre of diversity of the group is in Europe and adjacent parts of Africa and Asia; a few species occur in Australia, Africa, South America and on oceanic islands. The three species present in North America are introductions
.
Subsection Elatae (Kük.) Luceño & M. Escudero
Subsection Spirostachyae
Section (botany)
In botany, a section is a taxonomic rank below the genus, but above the species. The subgenus, if present, is higher than the section, and the rank of series, if present, is below the section. Sections are typically used to help organise very large genera, which may have hundreds of species...
of the genus Carex
Carex
Carex is a genus of plants in the family Cyperaceae, commonly known as sedges. Other members of the Cyperaceae family are also called sedges, however those of genus Carex may be called "true" sedges, and it is the most species-rich genus in the family. The study of Carex is known as...
, containing 38 species of sedge
Sedge
- Plants :* Acorus calamus, sweet flag, a plant in the Acoraceae family* Any of the plants in the family Cyperaceae- Animals :* A collective noun for several species of birds, including bitterns, cranes and herons* Sedge-fly, caddisfly- Other uses :...
. Species in Carex sect. Spirostachyae share a suite of features, including the short internode
Internode
Internode may refer to:* A portion of a plant stem between nodes* Internode , an Internet service provider in Australia* Internodal segment, a portion of a nerve fiber...
s of the primary rhizome
Rhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
s, the presence of an antiligule, the leaf-like, sheathing bract
Bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis, or cone scale. Bracts are often different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of a different color, shape, or texture...
at the base of the inflorescence, the presence of three stigmas
Stigma (botany)
The stigma is the receptive tip of a carpel, or of several fused carpels, in the gynoecium of a flower. The stigma receives pollen at pollination and it is on the stigma that the pollen grain germinates. The stigma is adapted to catch and trap pollen with various hairs, flaps, or sculpturings...
in female flowers, and the shape of the seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
s.
The section is composed of two subsections, with differing edaphic
Edaphic
Edaphic is a nature related to soil. Edaphic qualities may characterize the soil itself, including drainage, texture, or chemical properties such as pH. Edaphic may also characterize organisms, such as plant communities, where it specifies their relationships with soil...
preferences; subsection Elatae comprises species that lives on acid
Acid
An acid is a substance which reacts with a base. Commonly, acids can be identified as tasting sour, reacting with metals such as calcium, and bases like sodium carbonate. Aqueous acids have a pH of less than 7, where an acid of lower pH is typically stronger, and turn blue litmus paper red...
ic soils, while those in subsection Spirostachyae live on basic
Alkalinity
Alkalinity or AT measures the ability of a solution to neutralize acids to the equivalence point of carbonate or bicarbonate. The alkalinity is equal to the stoichiometric sum of the bases in solution...
or ultramafic soils. The two sections also differ morphologically
Morphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
, with species in subsection Elatae having wider leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
, thicker stems
Plant stem
A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaves, inflorescence , conifer cones, roots, other stems etc. The internodes distance one node from another...
and larger spikes, the lowest of which may hang downwards.
The centre of diversity of the group is in Europe and adjacent parts of Africa and Asia; a few species occur in Australia, Africa, South America and on oceanic islands. The three species present in North America are introductions
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
.
Subsection Elatae (Kük.) Luceño & M. Escudero
- Carex aethiopica Schkuhr – South AfricaSouth AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
- Carex binervisCarex binervisCarex binervis, the green-ribbed sedge, is a European species of sedge with an Atlantic distribution. It is found from Fennoscandia to the Iberian Peninsula, and occurs in heaths, moorland and other damp, acidic environments. It typically grows to a height of , and has inflorescences comprising one...
Sm. – western EuropeWestern EuropeWestern Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the... - Carex borbonica Lam. – Mascarene IslandsMascarene IslandsThe Mascarene Islands is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar comprising Mauritius, Réunion, Rodrigues, Cargados Carajos shoals, plus the former islands of the Saya de Malha, Nazareth and Soudan banks...
- Carex boryana Schkuhr – Mascarene Islands
- Carex camposii Boiss. & Reut. – southern SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
- Carex catharinensis Boeck. – southeastern BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
- Carex clavata Thunb. – South Africa
- Carex cyrtosaccus C. B. Clarke – TanzaniaTanzaniaThe United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
, MalawiMalawiThe Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size... - Carex elgonensis Nelmes – Mount ElgonMount ElgonMount Elgon is an extinct shield volcano on the border of Uganda and Kenya, north of Kisumu and west of Kitale.- Physical features :It is the oldest and largest solitary volcano in East Africa, covering an area of around 3500 km²....
- Carex fischeri K. Schum. – central AfricaCentral AfricaCentral Africa is a core region of the African continent which includes Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda....
- Carex fissirostris Ball – Atlas MountainsAtlas MountainsThe Atlas Mountains is a mountain range across a northern stretch of Africa extending about through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The highest peak is Toubkal, with an elevation of in southwestern Morocco. The Atlas ranges separate the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastlines from the Sahara Desert...
, MoroccoMoroccoMorocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara... - Carex fuscula d'Urv. – ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires... - Carex gunniana Boot. – southeastern AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
- Carex helodes Link – southern Spain and PortugalPortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, northern Morocco - Carex hochstetteriana J. Gay ex Seub. – AzoresAzoresThe Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
- Carex laevigataCarex laevigataCarex laevigata is a species of sedge. It lives in moist, shady environment in the lowlands of Western and Central Europe, particularly in alder–ash woodland. It is distinguished from similar species, such as C. binervis and C. distans by the presence of tiny red dots on the utricles...
Sm. – western Europe, Morocco - Carex petitiana A. Rich. – central Africa
- Carex lowei Bech. – MadeiraMadeiraMadeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
- Carex mairii Coss. & Germ. – FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Spain, northern Morocco - Carex mannii E. A. Bruce – central Africa
- Carex mildbraediana Kük. – RwandaRwandaRwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
, BurundiBurundiBurundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...
, KenyaKenyaKenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east... - Carex paulo-vargasii Luceño & Marín – Morocco
- Carex perraudieriana J. Gay – Canary IslandsCanary IslandsThe Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
- Carex punctata Gaud. – Europe, Morocco, western Asia
- Carex simensis Hochst. ex A. Rich. – central Africa
- Carex thouarsiiCarex thouarsiiCarex thouarsii is a species of sedge found in the Tristan da Cunha archipelago. It lives chiefly in heaths dominated by Blechnum palmiforme, and Phylica arborea woodland. It is widespread and common on Tristan da Cunha and Inaccessible Island, but scarce on Nightingale Island, possibly due to a...
Carmich. – Tristan da CunhaTristan da CunhaTristan da Cunha is a remote volcanic group of islands in the south Atlantic Ocean and the main island of that group. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying from the nearest land, South Africa, and from South America... - Carex vallis-rosetto K. Schum. – Kenya, Tanzania
Subsection Spirostachyae
- Carex blakei Nelmes – southeastern Australia
- Carex burchelliana Boeck. – South Africa
- Carex diluta M. Bieb. – central and western Asia
- Carex distans L. – Europe, North Africa, central and western Asia
- Carex ecklonii Nees – South Africa
- Carex extensa Good. – Europe and Mediterranean BasinMediterranean BasinIn biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have a Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers, which supports characteristic Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub vegetation...
- Carex idaea Greuter et al. – CreteCreteCrete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
- Carex lainzii Luceño, E. Rico & T. Romero – central Spain
- Carex tasmanica Kük. – TasmaniaTasmaniaTasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
- Carex troodi Turril – CyprusCyprusCyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
- Carex vixdentata (Kük.) G. A. Wheeler – South America