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• Carex alopecoidea

Carex alopecoidea — fox-tail sedge

Facts

Fox-tail sedge is rare and a species of conservation concern in parts of New England. It is found mainly in far-western New England, on alkaline soils in riparian forests and stream-side marshes, where it apparently benefits from seasonal flooding. Similar species include common fox sedge (Carex vulpinoidea), and awl-fruited sedge (C. stipata), both of which have corrugated leaf sheaths (unlike the smooth leaf sheaths of fox-tail sedge); and smooth-sheathed sedge (C. laevivaginata), which has smooth sheaths but lacks the red dots on the leaf sheaths of fox-tail sedge.

Habitat

Anthropogenic (man-made or disturbed habitats), floodplain (river or stream floodplains), forests, marshes

Characteristics

• Flowers

  Bumps on fruit

  there are no papillae on the perigynium surface

  Inflorescence length

  20–40 mm

  Length of scale

  the scale is shorter than the perigynium

  Lowest spike stalk length

  0 mm

  Perigynium beak

  the perigynium has a beak

  Perigynium beak length

  Up to 2 mm

  Perigynium beak orientation

  the beak of the perigynium is straight, and in line with the perigynium

  Perigynium beak serrations

  the perigynium beak has tiny serrations along the edges

  Perigynium beak teeth

  the perigynium beak is divided at the top into two teeth

  Perigynium color

  • brown
  • tan
  • yellow

  Perigynium cross-section

  the perigynium is planoconvex (flat on one surface and rounded on the other) in cross-section

  Perigynium hairs

  the perigynium has no hairs

  Perigynium length

  3–4 mm

  Perigynium nerve number

  0–5

  Perigynium nerve texture

  • NA
  • the nerves on the perigynium are raised, even after drying the perigynium

  Perigynium nerves lower side

  0–5

  Perigynium nerves upper side

  0

  Perigynium orientation

  • the perigynia are angled outwards
  • the perigynia are oriented vertically or pressed against the axis or adjacent perigynia

  Perigynium puffy

  the achene is tightly enclosed by the perigynium

  Perigynium shape

  the perigynium body is ovate (egg-shaped)

  Perigynium width

  1.5–1.7 mm

  Perigynium winged

  the perigynium has no wings

  Pollen- and seed-producing spikes

  some of the spikes produce perigynia

  Pollen-producing spike length

  0 mm

  Pollen-producing spike number

  0

  Pollen-producing spike peduncle length

  0 mm

  Pollen-producing spike width

  0 mm

  Scale awn

  The carpellate scale does not have an awn (it may have a short point)

  Scale awn texture

  NA

  Scale color

  • red-brown
  • white or translucent

  Scale tip

  the carpellate scale tip is acuminate (tapered to a narrow point)

  Spike on stalk

  the lowest spike on the plant is not borne on a peduncle

  Spike orientation

  the spikes are oriented vertically or pressed against the axis

  Spikes per stem

  • 2-15
  • more than 15

  Stigma branching

  the stigmas have two branches

  Top spike

  the uppermost spike contains both staminate and carpellate flowers, with the carpellate flowers located below, or intermixed with, the staminate flowers

• Fruits or seeds

  Achene dimples

  the achene has no folds or dimples

  Achene length

  1.5 mm

  Achene width

  1.3 mm

  Style persistence

  the style falls off the mature achenes

• Growth form

  Rhizomes

  there are no rhizomes, or the rhizomes are very short

• Leaves

  Leaf arrangement

  the leaves are all produced from the base of the plant

  Leaf blade cross-section

  The leaf blade is folded lengthwise, with one prominent midvien

  Leaf blade length to width ratio

  Up to 85

  Leaf blade texture

  the leaf blade is smooth and hairless, or rough and sandpapery

  Leaf bumps

  the upper surface of the leaf blade does not have papillae

  Leaf sheath bumps

  there are no papillae at the top edge of the leaf sheath

  Leaf sheath color

  • the leaf sheath has no pink, red or purple tinting
  • the leaf sheath is tinted pink, red or purple

  Leaf sheath dots

  there are red dots on the translucent tissues of the leaf sheathes

  Leaf sheath folds

  there are no corrugations on the leaf sheath

  Leaf sheath texture

  the leaf sheath feels smooth, and has no hairs

  Ligule length

  5 mm

  Lowest bract sheath

  the lowest bract has no sheath (or a very short sheath up to four millimeters in length)

  Lowest leaf blade width

  Up to 7 mm

  Lowest leaf sheath texture

  the leaf sheath feels smooth (it may have soft hairs)

  stem leaf blade width

  Up to 7 mm

• Place

  Habitat

  • terrestrial
  • wetlands

  New England state

  • Connecticut
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • Vermont

  Specific habitat

  • forests
  • man-made or disturbed habitats
  • marshes
  • river or stream floodplains

• Stem, shoot, branch

  Plant height

  Up to 80 cm

  Relative stem height

  the main stem is equal to or shorter than the leaves

  Spike internode length

  Up to 0.5 mm

  Stem cross-section

  • the main stem has all three edges raised to narrow wing-like ridges
  • the main stem is roughly triangular in cross-section

  Stem spacing

  the stems grow close together in compact clusters or tufts

Wetland status

Usually occurs in wetlands, but occasionally in non-wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: FACW)

New England distribution and conservation status

From the dichotomous key of Flora Novae Angliae