Carex capitata

This record represents the narrow treatment of Carex capitata, excluding C. arctogena as a distinct species, following Aiken et al. (2007) and Villaverde et al. (2015). In contrast, Kartesz (1994) treats C. arctogena as a subspecies of C. capitata and FNA (2002, vol. 23) includes it as indistinct from typical C. capitata. However, FNA (2002, vol. 23) notes, "In Scandinavia (L. Reinhammar 1999) and Russia (T. V. Egorova 1999), Carex arctogena is distinguished from C. capitata on ecologic and morphologic grounds and also by allozymes at the rank of species. In North America the distinctions are not clear; two taxa can be observed, but there are also numerous specimens of uncertain determination.... Carex capitata and C. arctogena differ in habitat (boreal mires versus alpine heaths), habit (mat-forming versus tufted), and morphology of the pistillate scales (much shorter and narrower than perigynia and with narrow hyaline margins versus as long as perigynia and with broad hyaline margins) and perigynia (beak gradually formed and smooth versus beak and may be sparingly serrulate)."