Carex mckittrickensis | |
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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. Albae |
Species: | C. mckittrickensis
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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]
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]
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]