Sierra Sedge

Carex nervina and C. neurophora share distinctive proximal sheaths, which are elongate (to 15 cm) and longer than their blades, do not split with age, truncate at the apex, prominently veined, and green. These taxa may be distinguished by vegetative characters of the distal leaf sheaths, which are smooth with a hyaline convex apex in C. neurophora and rugose with a cartilaginous concave apex in C. nervina. Perigynia characters also distinguish the taxa; C. nervina has a greater number of veins and a glabrous beak. The parapatric distribution and shared sheath characteristics indicate that these species may be recently derived from a common ancestor.

Plants with basal and proximal sheaths red-papillose, those of previous year not persistent. Culms to 70 cm × 1.5 mm, scabrous. Leaves: sheaths usually all with blades, proximal 2–3 to 10 cm with reduced blades, green, fronts of proximal sheaths herbaceous, prominently veined, not splitting, apex truncate, fronts of distal sheaths hyaline, indistinctly veined with linear veins, smooth, apex colorless, thickened concave, entire; ligules obtuse, 1.5 mm, free limb to 0.5 mm; blades not clustered at base, not epistomic, to 60 cm × 5 mm. Inflorescences very condensed, ovoid, with 5–10 individually indistinguishable branches, 2.5 × 1.5 cm; proximal internode not visible, not more than 3 mm; proximal bracts scalelike, inconspicuous. Scales hyaline, brown, subequal to perigynia, acute. Perigynia pale brown, 15-veined abaxially, 7–12-veined adaxially, to 4.5 × 2 mm, base distended only slightly proximally, cordate; stipe to 0.2 mm; beak to 2 mm, smooth or subserrulate, apical teeth to 0.3 mm. Achenes ovate, to 2 × 1.5 mm; stalk to 0.2 mm; persistent style base cylindric.

Calif., Nev., Oreg.

Fruiting Jul–Aug.

Subalpine meadows; 1200–3000m.

Carex nervina I.. H. Bailey, Bot. Gaz. 10: 203
pi. 3,f. 6-8. 1885.
Cespitose, the rootstocks short-elongate, black. fibrillose, rather slender but tough, the culms stout at base, 3.5 mm thick, strongly aphyllopodic, ! 9 dm high. Battened and striate, weak, sharply triangular, concave on the sides, slightly flattened in drying, about equaling or exceeding the leaves, roughened on the angles above, brownish -tinged at base; leaves with well-developed blades about 6 to a fertile culm, on lower fourth, but not bunched, the blades very flat, flaccid, light-green, 1-3 dm. long. 3.5 5 mm. wide, not long-attenuate, roughened towardapt , somewhat nodulose at base, the sheaths conspicuously green-and-whitemottled dor-ally, tight and not cross-rugulose ventrallv, thickened and truncate or concave at mouth, not prolonged upward, the ligule nearly as long as wide, brown-margined; inllorcs-
Consisting of 5—10 scarcely distinguishable androgynous spikes, densely aggregated into an ovoid or oblong head 1.5 -3 cm. long. 8 10 nun thick, the individual spikes suborbicular or ovoid, the larger X mm. long, 6 mm. wide, and containing some 6 12 ascending or at length
:ng perigynia below and a few rather inconspicuous staminate Bowers above; lower bract more or li i developed, 5 20mm long, cuspidati thi center green, the margins brownishhyalin ite, acute, brown with green centei and narrow hyaline margins, about
width of but shorter than perigynia. perigynia plano-convex, hour,, Ian oi ovate-lanceolate,
DUD long, I S mm wide, light-brown or deep-chestnut-tinged above, membranaceous, Ij many-nerved on both faces, sharp-margined above but no) wing-margined, the I, over
■■irtli strongly spongy, substipitatc, rounded al base, tapering into a imooth oi jub-
. half length of body, iharply bidentate, thi teeth lender, erect, ihort but con-
spicuou tcben lenticulai narrowl) quadrate-orbicular, i 75 mm long, I ' mm wide,
tpiculate, Hibstipitati tyli lender, short, enlarged al ba* jointed with achcne; stigma, two, Jender, light-colored, eloni Type locality: Summit Camp, California (Kellogg, July 10. 1870).
I iistribution : Mountains of southern Oregon and California, where found in the Sierra Nevada as far south as Tulare Countv. (Specimens examined showing range as given.)

Carex nervina is a species of sedge known by the common name Sierra sedge.