Carex archeri

Carex archeri, known as Archer's sedge,[3] is a species of sedge in the genus Carex, endemic to south-eastern Australia.

Carex archeri
1859 illustration of C. archeri by Walter Hood Fitch
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
(unranked):
Angiosperms
(unranked):
Monocots
Order:
Poales
Family:
Cyperaceae
Genus:
Carex
Subgenus:
C. subg. Vignea
Section:
C. sect. Inversae
Species:
C. archeri
Binomial name
Carex archeri
Synonyms [2]
  • Carex acicularis Boott
  • Carex pyrenaica F.Muell. non Wahlenb.

Description

Carex archeri grows up to 25 centimetres (10 in) high, with leaves less than 0.5 millimetres (0.02 in) wide.[4] Its inflorescence comprises a single spike subtended by a bract that is longer than the inflorescence. The spike contains few flowers, with the female flowers towards the base of the spike, and a very short portion towards the tip containing male flowers.[4] The glumes of the female flowers are 2.5–4.0 mm (0.098–0.157 in) long, and the utricles that form in the female flowers are 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in) long, with a 1.3–2.5-millimetre (0.05–0.10 in) notched beak.[4]

Specimens of C. archeri may be mistaken for stunted examples of either of two species classified in the same section, C. raleighii and C. hebes.[4]

Distribution and ecology

Carex archeri grows in bogs, alpine heath and tussock grassland in upland areas of Tasmania and the Australian Alps of Victoria and New South Wales.[4][5] Within New South Wales, it is limited to parts of Kosciuszko National Park around Club Lake and the upper reaches of the Thredbo River.[5]

Conservation

Carex archeri is not listed on the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999,[6] but it is subject to protection by the state of New South Wales as an endangered species,[5] and as a vulnerable species in Victoria.[3]

Taxonomy

Carex archeri was first described by Francis Boott in 1858,[3] and named in honour of William Archer.[7] Archer had collected the type material in the western mountains of Tasmania.[1]

References
  1. F. Boott. "Gen. XV. Carex, L.". In J. D. Hooker (ed.). Flora Tasmaniæ, Botany of Tasmania. Volume II. Monocotyledones and Acotyledones. pp. 98–102.
  2. "Cyperaceae" (PDF). Australian Plant Census. Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  3. "Carex archeri Boott: Archer's Sedge". Atlas of Living Australia. Archived from the original on 10 December 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  4. "Carex archeri Boott". eMonocot. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  5. "Archer's Carex - profile". Threatened species. New South Wales Office of Environment and Heritage. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  6. Keith L. McDougall & Neville G. Walsh. "Treeless vegetation of the Australian Alps" (PDF). Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 June 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  7. J. H. Maiden (1909). "Records of Tasmanian botanists" (PDF). Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania: 9–29. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-12-09. Retrieved 2014-12-06.
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