Plants loosely cespitose, long-rhizomatous. Culms red-purple at base. Leaves: basal sheaths not fibrous; sheath fronts, not red dotted, membranous; blades V-shaped in cross section when young, glabrous, basal circinnate distally. Inflorescence a single spike; bractless; spike androgynous. Proximal pistillate scales less than 10 mm, apex acute or obtuse, sometimes mucronate. Perigynia ascending, pale yellow-brown with dark tip, veinless or obscurely veined with 2 prominent marginal veins, narrowly obovate, trigonous in cross section, base tapering, apex to abrupt beak, glabrous; beak 0.2–0.6 mm, orifice truncate. Stigmas 3. Achenes trigonous, almost as large as bodies of perigynia; style deciduous.

Distribution

North America, Eurasia.

Discussion

Species 2 (1 in the flora).

The circumscription followed here is that proposed by T. V. Egorova (1999).

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

Carex rupestris