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Cyperaceae

Cyperaceae
Cyperaceae image
Max Licher
  • FNA
  • Resources
Peter W. Ball, A. A. Reznicek, David F. Murray in Flora of North America (vol. 23)
Herbs, annual or perennial, cespitose or not, rhizomatous or not, stoloniferous or not. Roots fibrous, principally adventitious. Stems (culms) usually trigonous, occasionally terete, rarely compressed, usually solid, rarely hollow or septate. Leaves basal and/or cauline, alternate, usually 3-ranked, rarely 2-ranked or multi-ranked, bases forming cylindric sheaths enclosing stem, margins usually fused; junction of sheaths and blades often with adaxial flaps of tissue or fringes of hair (ligules); blades frequently absent from some basal leaves, rarely from cauline leaves, when present divergent or ascending, flat, folded, plicate, rolled, or terete, linear, venation parallel. Primary inflorescences (spikelets) a shortened axis; glumaceous bracts (scales) 1-many, spirally arranged, sometimes 2-ranked, usually appressed or ascending; scales usually all fertile, each subtending a single flower, sometimes proximal and/or distal scales empty; lateral spikes often with basal, usually empty, usually 2-keeled scale (prophyll); occasionally prophyll subtending and enclosing rachilla, bearing 1 pistillate, sometimes (0-)3 staminate flowers and empty scales (Carex, Cymophyllus, and Kobresia). Secondary inflorescences panicles, often modified to corymb, pseudoumbel, cyme (anthela), raceme, spike, or capitulum (head), rarely single spike, usually subtended by foliaceous or, less frequently, glumaceous bracts; secondary inflorescences sometimes simulating spikelets (Carex, Cymophyllus, and Kobresia). Flowers hypogynous, bisexual in most genera, unisexual in Scleria, Carex, Cymophyllus, and Kobresia; perianth absent or with (1-)3-6(-30) bristles and/or scales, usually falling off with fruit; stamens usually (1-)3, rarely more, usually distinct; anthers basifixed; pistils 1, 2-3(-4)-carpellate, fused, locule 1; style undivided or branches 2-3(-4); stigma sometimes papillate. Fruits achenes, usually trigonous or biconvex; pericarps thin (except in Scleria). Seeds 1; testa thin, free from pericarp; embryo basal; endosperm abundant. x = 5-ca. 100.

No consensus exists regarding the number of genera and the overall relationships of genera within Cyperaceae. The most recent account of the family (P. Goetghebeur 1998) recognized 104 genera distributed among 4 subfamilies and 14 tribes. That arrangement differs somewhat from that of J. Bruhl (1995). With one minor exception the arrangement of the family here follows that of Goetghebeur.

The family is characterized by the occurrence of a number of unusual cytological features including: (1) chromosomes with diffuse centromeres, (2) post-reductional meiosis, and (3) pollen grains formed from tetrads in which 3 of the 4 microspores fail to develop. The first two features are found in at least some Juncaceae and are unique to the two families. Juncaceae also have pollen in tetrads, but in that family all four microspores produce pollen grains. Some species in some genera of Cyperaceae (particularly Eleocharis) possess chromosomes with localized centromeres (S. S. Bir et al. 1993). The wide range of chromosome numbers found in Cyperaceae is largely because of agmatoploidy; polyploidy has been hypothesized for some genera, especially Eleocharis, although polyploidy has not been demonstrated unequivocally.

Because of morphologic similarities in vegetative and inflorescence characters, the family has commonly been associated with Poaceae. Cytological features discussed above clearly indicate that to be a superficial similarity. Data from rbcL studies also support the view that Cyperaceae and Poaceae are not closely related (M. R. Duvall et al. 1993b; G. M. Plunkett et al. 1995); they do support the concept of close relationship between Cyperaceae and Juncaceae.

For most families of flowering plants the phenological data given are flowering times. Because most Cyperaceae cannot be reliably identified when in flower, in this volume fruiting time is given for all species by season, sometimes qualified by early, mid, or late, or by months. The fruiting time has been interpreted broadly to include the period when the fruit is more or less fully formed but not yet ripe. The fruiting period provided covers the entire range of the taxon. Quite a difference between fruiting periods in different parts of the range of the species may well occur, especially for widespread species and species with extensive elevation range.

For a recent, comprehensive review of the economic importance of Cyperaceae, see D. A. Simpson and C. A. Inglis (2001).

Species within checklist: South Dakota || << 1 - 50 taxa >>
Bolboschoenus fluviatilis
Media resource of Bolboschoenus fluviatilis
Bolboschoenus maritimus
Media resource of Bolboschoenus maritimus
Bolboschoenus paludosus
Media resource of Bolboschoenus paludosus
Carex abbreviata
Media resource of Carex abbreviata
Carex acutinella
Media resource of Carex acutinella
Carex aenea
Media resource of Carex aenea
Carex aggregata
Media resource of Carex aggregata
Carex albicans
Media resource of Carex albicans
Carex alopecoidea
Media resource of Carex alopecoidea
Carex angarae
Media resource of Carex angarae
Carex aquatilis
Media resource of Carex aquatilis
Carex assiniboinensis
Media resource of Carex assiniboinensis
Carex atherodes
Media resource of Carex atherodes
Carex athrostachya
Media resource of Carex athrostachya
Carex aurea
Media resource of Carex aurea
Carex backii
Media resource of Carex backii
Carex bebbii
Media resource of Carex bebbii
Carex bella
Media resource of Carex bella
Carex bicknellii
Media resource of Carex bicknellii
Carex blanda
Media resource of Carex blanda
Carex boecheriana
Media resource of Carex boecheriana
Carex brevior
Media resource of Carex brevior
Carex brevipes
Media resource of Carex brevipes
Carex brunnescens
Media resource of Carex brunnescens
Carex camporum
Media resource of Carex camporum
Carex canescens
Media resource of Carex canescens
Carex capillaris
Media resource of Carex capillaris
Carex cephalophora
Media resource of Carex cephalophora
Carex comosa
Media resource of Carex comosa
Carex concinna
Media resource of Carex concinna
Carex conjuncta
Media resource of Carex conjuncta
Carex convoluta
Media resource of Carex convoluta
Carex crawei
Media resource of Carex crawei
Carex cristatella
Media resource of Carex cristatella
Carex curta
Media resource of Carex curta
Carex deweyana
Media resource of Carex deweyana
Carex disperma
Media resource of Carex disperma
Carex diversistylis
Media resource of Carex diversistylis
Carex douglasii
Media resource of Carex douglasii
Carex drummondiana
Media resource of Carex drummondiana
Carex durifolia
Media resource of Carex durifolia
Carex duriuscula
Media resource of Carex duriuscula
Carex eburnea
Media resource of Carex eburnea
Carex eleocharis
Media resource of Carex eleocharis
Carex elyniformis
Media resource of Carex elyniformis
Carex emoryi
Media resource of Carex emoryi
Carex erxlebeniana
Media resource of Carex erxlebeniana
Carex festivella
Media resource of Carex festivella
Carex filifolia
Media resource of Carex filifolia
Carex flaccidula
Media resource of Carex flaccidula
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