Plants loosely cespitose, short- and stout-rhizomatous. Culms red-purple or red-brown at base. Leaves: basal sheaths fibrous; sheath fronts membranous; blades V-shaped in cross section when young, widest blades 4 mm or wider, distal leaves sometimes bladeless, glabrous. Inflorescences solitary or racemose, with 3–8 spikes; proximal nonbasal bracts bladeless or blade not more than 2 mm, sheathing; solitary inflorescences unisexual, bractless spikes; racemose inflorescences with lateral spikes pistillate or androgynous, some basal, pedunculate, prophyllate; terminal spike staminate or androgynous. Proximal pistillate scales with apex obtuse to awned. Perigynia ascending, veined, stipitate, oblong-obovate, trigonous in cross section, 4–5 mm, base tapering, apex tapering, beakless or beaked, pubescent; beak orifice emarginate. Stigmas 3. Achenes trigonous, almost as large as bodies of perigynia; style deciduous.

Distribution

e North America.

Discussion

Species 2 (2 in flora).

Carex sect. Pictae appears to be closely related to sections Digitatae, Scirpinae, and Acrocystis.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

Carex baltzellii, Carex picta

Key

1	Staminate and pistillate flowers on same plant; spikes 3–8, terminal spike mainly staminate, usually with pistillate flowers at base; lateral spikes mainly pistillate; proximal leaf blades 4–8 mm wide, glaucous abaxially.	Carex baltzellii
1	Staminate and pistillate flowers on different plants; spike 1, unisexual; proximal leaf blades 2–4.5 mm wide, green adaxially.	Carex picta