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Carex meadii

Dewey

Mead's Sedge

G5Secure Found in 3 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.129239
Element CodePMCYP03870
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassMonocotyledoneae
OrderCyperales
FamilyCyperaceae
GenusCarex
Other Common Names
Carex de Mead (FR) Mead's 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 Date2024-07-02
Change Date2024-07-02
Edition Date2024-07-02
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 meadii is a wide-ranging perennial graminoid in a variety of open habitats occurring primarily in eastern and central North America from Ontario and Manitoba, Canada south to Georgia west to Texas, Arizona, and Mexico. Threats include development, conversion to pasture, rights-of-way maintenance, recreational activities, succession, invasive species, and deer browse. Little is known about trends, but with a large range extent and large number of occurrences, this species is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
FNA (2002) reports Carex meadii primarily in eastern and central North America from Ontario and Manitoba, Canada south to Georgia west to Texas, Arizona, and Mexico; however, Licher and Rink (2018) indicate that the Arizona report of C. meadii is based on a different species (C. arizonica). Range extent was estimated to be over 4 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 300 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, conversion to pasture, rights-of-way maintenance, recreational activities, succession, invasive species, deer browse, and other threats in some places.
Ecology & Habitat

Description

Carex meadii is a grass like plant that has widely scattered shoots arising from long deep rhizomes. The leaf blades are gray-green, 7-15 cm long, and 2-7 mm wide. The fruiting stems are 15-60 cm tall. Flowers are clustered into 2-4 elongated spikes along the upper part of the stem.

Habitat

Carex meadii grows in mesic to wet calcareous prairies, loess prairies, fens, limestone barrens and glades, cedar glades, open woodlands and savannas, moist depressions over "calcareous substrates, on low, moist clayey or loamy soils over mafic or ultramafic rocks (such as diabase or serpentine) or calcaerous rocks" (FNA 2002, Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team 2024).
Terrestrial Habitats
Forest/WoodlandWoodland - ConiferSavannaGrassland/herbaceousBarrens
Palustrine Habitats
HERBACEOUS WETLANDBog/fen
Other Nations (2)
CanadaN2
ProvinceRankNative
ManitobaS1Yes
OntarioS2Yes
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
NebraskaSNRYes
VirginiaS3Yes
MississippiS3Yes
MissouriSNRYes
TennesseeSNRYes
New JerseyS1Yes
DelawareS1Yes
ArkansasS4Yes
TexasSNRYes
AlabamaSNRYes
MarylandS1Yes
Rhode IslandSNRYes
GeorgiaS2Yes
MichiganSNRYes
New YorkSHYes
MinnesotaSNRYes
South CarolinaS1Yes
PennsylvaniaS2Yes
OklahomaSNRYes
IowaS4Yes
West VirginiaS1Yes
KansasS5Yes
North DakotaSNRYes
South DakotaSNRYes
IllinoisS3Yes
North CarolinaS1Yes
ArizonaS1Yes
WisconsinSNRYes
KentuckyS4Yes
LouisianaS3Yes
OhioSNRYes
IndianaS3Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined———

—

Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (3)
Missouri (2)
AreaForestAcres
Big Creek Rare II Study AreaMark Twain National Forest9,277
Swan Creek Rare II Study AreaMark Twain National Forest7,310
Texas (1)
AreaForestAcres
Little Lake CreekNational Forests in Texas596
References (8)
  1. Dodds, J. 2022. <i>Carex meadii </i>Rare Plant Profile. New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, State Parks, Forests and Historic Sites, State Forest Fire Service and Forestry, Office of Natural Lands Management, New Jersey Natural Heritage Program, Trenton, NJ. 16 pp. [https://nj.gov/dep/parksandforests/natural/heritage/docs/carex-meadii-meads-sedge.pdf]
  2. 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.
  3. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2024. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2024).
  4. iNaturalist. 2024. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2024).
  5. 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.
  6. NatureServe. 2024. NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia.
  7. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).
  8. 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.