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Carex crinita

Lam.

Fringed Sedge

G5Secure Found in 10 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.144093
Element CodePMCYP03390
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
Carex crépu (FR) fringed 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 Date2024-07-01
Change Date1988-08-31
Edition Date2024-07-01
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 crinita is a wide-ranging perennial graminoid in a variety of wetlands occurring in eastern North America from Nova Scotia west to Manitoba, Canada and south in the United States to Georgia west to Texas. Its varieties may be sympatric and syntopic, and hybrids of them with other Carex species have been reported. Threats include development, rights-of-way maintenance, logging, hydrological alteration, succession, and invasive species. Little is known about trends, but with a large range extent and large number of occurrences, broad habitat preferences, and no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities, this species is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
Carex crinita occurs in eastern North America from Nova Scotia west to Manitoba, Canada and south in the United States to Georgia west to Texas (FNA 2002). See individual entries for distribution details about the varieties. Range extent was estimated to be over 5 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data documented between 1993 and 2024 (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
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 over 1,000 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, rights-of-way maintenance, logging, 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 crinita grows in swamps, floodplain forests, wet forests, wet meadows, marshes, bogs, stream edges, margins of lakes and ponds, roadside ditches, and a wide range of other wetlands (FNA 2002, Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team 2024).
Palustrine Habitats
HERBACEOUS WETLANDFORESTED WETLANDBog/fenRiparian
Other Nations (2)
CanadaN5
ProvinceRankNative
New BrunswickS5Yes
Nova ScotiaS5Yes
OntarioS5Yes
ManitobaS1Yes
Prince Edward IslandS4Yes
QuebecSNRYes
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
District of ColumbiaSNRYes
Rhode IslandSNRYes
IndianaS4Yes
MarylandSNRYes
South CarolinaSNRYes
TennesseeSNRYes
VirginiaS5Yes
VermontS5Yes
MississippiSNRYes
MichiganSNRYes
OklahomaSNRYes
MissouriSNRYes
AlabamaSNRYes
IllinoisS3Yes
LouisianaSNRYes
GeorgiaSNRYes
TexasSNRYes
North CarolinaS5Yes
DelawareSNRYes
IowaS1Yes
ConnecticutSNRYes
OhioS5Yes
MinnesotaSNRYes
MassachusettsSNRYes
West VirginiaS5Yes
New HampshireSNRYes
New JerseySNRYes
WisconsinSNRYes
KentuckySNRYes
FloridaSNRYes
PennsylvaniaS5Yes
New YorkS5Yes
ArkansasSNRYes
MaineSNRYes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined———

—

Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (10)
Alabama (1)
AreaForestAcres
Oakey MountainTalladega National Forest6,129
Arkansas (1)
AreaForestAcres
Richland CreekOzark-St. Francis National Forest571
Illinois (1)
AreaForestAcres
Burke BranchShawnee National Forest6,231
New Hampshire (1)
AreaForestAcres
KilkennyWhite Mountain National Forest28,766
North Carolina (1)
AreaForestAcres
Lost CovePisgah National Forest5,944
Tennessee (1)
AreaForestAcres
Upper Bald RiverCherokee National Forest9,202
Virginia (1)
AreaForestAcres
Seng MountainJefferson National Forest6,428
West Virginia (3)
AreaForestAcres
Cranberry AdditionMonongahela National Forest11,123
Cranberry Glades Botanical AreaMonongahela National Forest785
Falls Of Hills CreekMonongahela National Forest6,925
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.