Carex mckittrickensis

Carex mckittrickensis

Critically Imperiled  (NatureServe)[1][2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Cyperaceae
Genus: Carex
Subgenus: Carex subg. Carex
Section: Carex sect. Albae
Species:
C. mckittrickensis
Binomial name
Carex mckittrickensis

Carex mckittrickensis, the Guadalupe Mountain sedge, is a species of sedge endemic to Guadalupe Mountains National Park in western Texas. It occurs on the sides of steep ravines and also in riparian forests.[3][4]

Description

Carex mckittrickensis is an herb up to 35 centimetres (14 in) tall, spreading by means of underground rhizomes. Its stems are round in cross-section and covered with reddish-brown leaf sheaths toward the base. Its leaves are thread-like, up to 17 cm (6.7 in) long and less than 1 cm (0.39 in) across. Staminate (male) flowering spikes form at the top of the plant, with pistillate (female) spikes in axils of the leaves.[3][5]

Taxonomy

Carex mckittrickensis is very closely related to the widespread Carex eburnea, but differs in the large size of many of its floral parts.[3] It was described in 1998 by Peter W. Ball of the University of Toronto, and named after McKittrick Canyon in the Guadalupe Mountains National Park.[3]

References

  1. ^ "NatureServe Explorer Carex mckittrickensis". NatureServe Explorer Carex mckittrickensis. Arlington Virginia, United States of America: NatureServe. 2022-06-03. NatureServe Element Code:PMCYP03LB0. Retrieved 23 Jun 2022.
  2. ^ Faber-Langendoen, D; Nichols, J; Master, L; Snow, K; Tomaino, A; Bittman, R; Hammerson, G; Heidel, B; Ramsay, L; Teucher, A; Young, B (2012). NatureServe Conservation Status Assessments: Methodology for Assigning Ranks (PDF) (Report). Arlington, Virginia, United States of America: NatureServe.
  3. ^ a b c d Peter William Ball (1998). "Carex mckittrickensis (Cyperaceae), a new species from western Texas". Novon. 8 (3): 220–224. doi:10.2307/3392004. JSTOR 3392004.
  4. ^ Natura Italiana Gallery
  5. ^ Gardening Europe Archived February 28, 2014, at the Wayback Machine