Carex stipata

Muhl. ex Willd.

Awl-fruit Sedge

G5Secure Found in 29 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.145291
Element CodePMCYP03CZ0
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassMonocotyledoneae
OrderCyperales
FamilyCyperaceae
GenusCarex
Other Common Names
awlfruit sedge (EN) Carex stipité (FR) Stalk-grain Sedge (EN)
Concept Reference
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2024-07-29
Change Date1984-02-29
Edition Date2024-07-29
Edition AuthorsSoteropoulos (2024)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences> 300
Rank Reasons
Carex stipata is a wide-ranging perennial graminoid in a variety of wetlands occurring in North America from Newfoundland and Labrador west to British Columbia, Canada, Alaska and the contiguous United States except a few south central states, and eastern Asia in the Russian Far East, China, and Japan with two varieties. Threats include development, logging, recreational activities, hydrological alteration, succession, and invasive species. Little is known about trends, but with a large range extent and large number of occurrences, abundant habitat, broad habitat preferences, and no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities, this species is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
Carex stipata occurs primarily in the temperate biome, in North America from Newfoundland and Labrador west to British Columbia, Canada, Alaska and the contiguous United States except a few south central states, and eastern Asia in the Russian Far East, China, and Japan (FNA 2002). See individual entries for distribution details about the two varieties.
Occurrences Comments
By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data documented between 1993 and 2024, it is estimated that there are thousands of occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
Threat Impact Comments
Although threats are not widely documented, this species is potentially threatened by development, logging, recreational activities, hydrological alteration, succession, invasive species, and other threats in some places. However, their overall impact is likely negligible given the species' broad range, large number of occurrences, and no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Carex stipata grows in "seasonally saturated or inundated soils in wet meadows, marshes, edges of tidal marshes, cypress swamps, or alluvial bottomlands," sloughs, and ditches (FNA 2002, Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team 2024).
Palustrine Habitats
TEMPORARY POOLHERBACEOUS WETLANDFORESTED WETLAND
Other Nations (2)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
Rhode IslandSNRYes
OhioSNRYes
MichiganSNRYes
MississippiS3Yes
IdahoSNRYes
IowaS4Yes
VirginiaS5Yes
TennesseeSNRYes
OklahomaSNRYes
GeorgiaSNRYes
UtahSNRYes
AlabamaSNRYes
CaliforniaSNRYes
WisconsinSNRYes
PennsylvaniaS5Yes
FloridaS4Yes
MissouriS3Yes
VermontS5Yes
MinnesotaSNRYes
South DakotaSNRYes
New MexicoSNRYes
NebraskaSNRYes
ConnecticutSNRYes
ArizonaS3Yes
IllinoisS3Yes
North DakotaSNRYes
District of ColumbiaSNRYes
IndianaS5Yes
North CarolinaS3Yes
MassachusettsSNRYes
South CarolinaSNRYes
NevadaSNRYes
OregonSNRYes
West VirginiaS4Yes
WashingtonSNRYes
KansasSNRYes
WyomingS3Yes
MontanaS4Yes
New JerseySNRYes
New YorkS5Yes
MaineSNRYes
ColoradoS3Yes
MarylandSNRYes
DelawareSNRYes
KentuckySNRYes
New HampshireSNRYes
AlaskaS2Yes
CanadaN5
ProvinceRankNative
OntarioS5Yes
Prince Edward IslandS5Yes
SaskatchewanS4Yes
Nova ScotiaS5Yes
LabradorS3Yes
Island of NewfoundlandS4Yes
QuebecSNRYes
AlbertaS3Yes
New BrunswickS5Yes
ManitobaS4Yes
British ColumbiaS5Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined

Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (29)
Alaska (10)
AreaForestAcres
Bering LakeChugach National Forest965,076
Chugach-13Chugach National Forest13,337
Green RocksTongass National Forest11,093
Mansfield PeninsulaTongass National Forest54,991
North EtolinTongass National Forest40,993
North KruzofTongass National Forest33,146
RhineTongass National Forest23,010
Sheridan GlacierChugach National Forest224,683
Sitka SoundTongass National Forest13,459
Taku-SnettishamTongass National Forest664,928
Arizona (2)
AreaForestAcres
Barbershop CanyonCoconino National Forest1,311
East Clear CreekCoconino National Forest1,613
Idaho (1)
AreaForestAcres
Peace RockBoise National Forest191,734
Minnesota (1)
AreaForestAcres
Phantom LakeSuperior National Forest6,521
Montana (1)
AreaForestAcres
West Big HoleBeaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest133,563
New Mexico (4)
AreaForestAcres
Alamo CanyonSanta Fe National Forest8,639
GallinasSanta Fe National Forest13,208
Pecos WS RiverSanta Fe National Forest5,396
Virgin CanyonSanta Fe National Forest6,068
Oregon (3)
AreaForestAcres
Flag CreekMalheur National Forest7,716
Hurricane CreekWallowa-Whitman National Forest1,606
North Fork MalheurMalheur National Forest18,069
Utah (1)
AreaForestAcres
North FrancisWasatch-Cache National Forest8,148
Washington (3)
AreaForestAcres
Meadow CreekUmatilla National Forest4,882
Mt. Baker NorthMt Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest16,873
Willow SpringsUmatilla National Forest10,414
West Virginia (1)
AreaForestAcres
Little MountainMonongahela National Forest8,172
Wyoming (2)
AreaForestAcres
Piney CreekBighorn National Forest22,240
Winegar HoleTarghee National Forest247
References (7)
  1. Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2002b. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 23. Magnoliophyta: Commelinidae (in part): Cyperaceae. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xxiv + 608 pp.
  2. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2024. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2024).
  3. iNaturalist. 2024. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2024).
  4. Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
  5. NatureServe. 2024. NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia.
  6. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).
  7. Weakley, A.S., and Southeastern Flora Team. 2024. Flora of the southeastern United States. Edition of March 4, 2024. University of North Carolina Herbarium (NCU), North Carolina Botanical Garden, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. 2203 pp.