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Carex bebbii - (image 1 of 5)

Taxonomy

Family: Cyperaceae

Section Ovales

Habitat

Wet calcareous meadows, shores, fens.

Associates

Distribution

Newfoundland to British Columbia, south to NJ, IL, NE, and CO.

Morphology

Tufted perennial to 90 cm; aphyllopodic. Leaves 2-4 mm wide, lax and elongate, sheaths hyaline ventrally. Spikes stout, mostly 4-12, gynaecandrous, to 9 mm, sessile in a crowded spike or head to 3 cm long. Pistillate scales shorter and narrower than perigynia; perigynia crowded, ascending, ovate, planoconvex, evidently nerved (or nerveless ventrally), 2-2.7 time as long as wide, margin winged and serrulate, tapering to a flattened and poorly defined beak. Achene lenticular, 1.1-1.5 mm long and 0.6-0.8 mm wide; stigmas 2.

Notes

Fruiting June

Wetland indicator: Obligate

Resembles Carex cristatella which has a perigynium that is not winged to the base and has a stiffly spreading to recurved beak. The perigynium of Carex bebbii is winged to the base and has a stiffly ascending beak.

References

Gleason, Henry A. and A. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of Vascular Plants of Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada. Second Ed.
The New York Botanical Garden. Bronx, NY

Swink, F. and G. Wilhelm. 1994. Plants of the Chicago Region.
Indiana Academy of Science. The Morton Arboretum. Lisle, Illinois.

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