Carex acaulis, known as the small dusky sedge,[1] is a species of sedge in the genus Carex native to the Falkland Islands and southern Argentina.
| Carex acaulis | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Cyperaceae |
| Genus: | Carex |
| Subgenus: | Carex subg. Carex |
| Section: | Carex sect. Abditispicae |
| Species: | C. acaulis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Carex acaulis | |
Description edit
Carex acaulis has at least two flowering spikes; the terminal one contains staminate (male) flowers and is 6–10 millimetres (0.24–0.39 in) long, while the others contain pistillate (female) flowers, each of which is subtended by a 2.5–3.7-millimetre (0.10–0.15 in) scale and may produce a utricle up to 9 mm (0.35 in) long.[2] Carex acaulis is very similar to the closely related species C. macrosolen, and the ranges of the two species overlap,[3] but C. macrosolen has much longer utricles than C. acaulis, at 10–24 mm (0.39–0.94 in) long.[2]
Taxonomy and distribution edit
Carex acaulis was first described by Jules Dumont d'Urville in 1826. He based his description on type material from near Port Louis on East Falkland Island.[3] The holotype was deposited at the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle in Paris.[3] The species has subsequently been reported from Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego in Argentina, although the Fuegian reports are considered suspect by the sedge expert Gerald Allen Wheeler; many of them actually refer to specimens of Carex sagei.[3][4]
Conservation and ecology edit
Like many other sedges, Carex acaulis is restricted to wet habitats, such as bogs and lake margins.[3] It is not included on the IUCN Red List, but it is rare in the Falkland Islands, and is listed nationally as a vulnerable species.[1]
References edit
- ^ a b "Vascular plant checklists". Falklands Conservation. Archived from the original on January 10, 2015. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
- ^ a b Gerald A. Wheeler (2002). "A new species of Carex section Abditispicae (Cyperaceae) from South America and additional notes on the section". Darwiniana. 40 (1–4): 191–198.
- ^ a b c d e Gerald Allen Wheeler (1988). "The distribution of Carex acaulis Urv., C. barrosii Nelmes, and C. macrosolen Steudel (Cyperaceae) in austral South America". Taxon. 37 (1): 127–131. doi:10.2307/1220939. JSTOR 1220939.
- ^ Gerald A. Wheeler (2007). "Carex sagei (Cyperaceae), the correct name for C. barrosii" (PDF). Darwiniana. 42 (2): 231–235.[permanent dead link]
External links edit
- "Specimens by collection: Carex acaulis". Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle. – includes images of the holotype