Table Of ContentNEW
ARKANSAS
CAREXCONOIDEA (CYPERACEAE) TO
AND ON OCCURRENCE
NOTES
ITS
AND
ARKANSAS
MISSOURI
IN
Tim
PaulM.McKenzie Smit
and Missoun'Department of
Fish Wildlife Service
U. S. I
608 E.Cherry Room 200 P.O.Box 180
St.;
MO
MO
^lumbia. 65201-7712, U.S.A. Jefferso.n City, 65 102
C.TheoWitsell
Rock,AR 72201, U.S.A.
Little
Newfoundland
Schkuhr extends from
The range Carex conoidea ex Willd.
of
and Nova Scotia west to Manitoba and south to Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio,
and North Carolina; disjunct and possibly introduced in Arizona (Radford et al.
&
Mohlenbrock Yatskievych Naczi Bryson 2002). Habitat listed
1964; 1999; 1999;
Tow
ground, and moist grassy places," "wet
includes
the species "bogs,"
for
upland (Radford
meadows, wet and moist depressions of prairies et
prairies,"
&
Naczi Bryson 2002).
Mohlenbrock Yatskievych 1999;
Voss 1999;
1964; 1972;
al.
The has not been previously documented from Arkansas (Hyatt 1998;
species
&
Committee Naczi Bryson 2002).
Smith Arkansas Vascular Flora 2002;
1988;
On 8 May while conducting plant survey on Searles Prairie Natural
2003, a
we clumps Carex conoidea
County discovered 32 of
Area Benton Arkansas,
in
The
throughout the western half of the preserve. species is readily
scattered
and
peduncles
combination green scabrous
recognized by the of light leaves,
uppermost
subtend
culms below the inflorescence, bracts that the pistillate
and plump, green
spikes equaling or exceeding the staminate spike, its lustrous
with 20 impressed nerves. Carex conoidea can be readily distin-
perigynia
ca.
Gnseae
guished from other members of the Carex section (L.H. Bailey)
and culms
peduncles
Kiikenthal in Arkansas by the combination of its scabrous
number impressed nerves (others in the
below the inflorescence, the fewer of
Section usually have 40 or more nerves), and the position of the staminate spike,
uppermost
well-exserted above the pistillate spike.
Mohlenbrock Yatskievych
Various authors Steyermark 1963; 1999;
(e.g.,
both
1999) depict the perigynia of C. conoidea as being tapered at ends. Illustra-
herbarium specimens over-mature
had or
undoubtedly only access to
tors
C
pcrigynja, us Iresh, mature perigynia of conoidea are plump and and
inflated,
watermelon We C
shaped. have noticed the perigynia conoidea shrink and
of
become
tapered both ends upon drying
at in a plant press.
Clumps
Carex
o[ conoidea at the Searles Prairie extend from swales
site in
the prairie to the drier margins of areas upslope
just of the depressions. Despite
the field characters listed above, identification of C. conoidea in the field can be
many
may
because
difficult of the tufts have few flowering culms and culms
the
on
ol ten lean or are hidden by adjacent, taller vegetation.
Searles Prairie represents the last intact remnant of the Osage Prairies that
m
once surrounded town
the of Rogers, Arkansas Benton County. was used
It
meadow
hay and
as a cut annually until was donated to the Arkansas Natu-
it
Commission
ral Heritage in 1988. Prescribed was introduced
fire to the prairie
m
with
in 1996, additional prescribed burns December 2001 and February
2003.
low loamy
Searles Prairie is a prairie that probably exists because of shallow,
impervious and
clay subsoil fluctuations water depth and
in persistence. This
provides graminoids and
other ground-covering
forbs a competitive advantage
over trees (Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission 2002). Thejay and Chero-
kee loam
silt soils are characterized by layers of moderately well-drained
silt
somewhat
loam,
to poorly drained silt loam, silty clay loam, and clay. This prai-
remains wet long
rie for periods of time after rains due to the clay (United States
f>partment
of Agriculture 1977) and poor drainage.
C
Plants associated with conoidea
at Searles Prairie include Agrostis
Andwpogon
hyemalis, Carex
gerardii, buxhaumii,
hrevior, bushii,
C. C.
C.
Cephalanthus
jestucacea,
occidentalis, Cicuta maculata,
Eleocharis
verrucosa,
Eryngium
Eupatorium
U. woljii, yuccifolium, Galium
perfoliatum, ohtusum,
juncus Orbexilum
pedunculatum, Panicum
acuminatum,
spp.,
scoparium,
P.
Physostegia angustifolia, PotentiUa simplex, Pycnanthemum
Ra-
tenuifolium,
nunculus
laxicaulis,Rubus spp,znd Sisyrinchium
angustijolium.
and
n.xieland Rd ,n Rogers, AR; T20NR30WS35SE1/4SE1/4SW1/4; BentonviUe South Quad
7.5' 8
May 200 1 Kk K.ncV 2081 (OOV, MO); WHsell 03-0232 (anhc-Arkansas Commis-
Natural Heritage
Carex
conoidea apparently good
is a indicator of high quality, well-managed
prairies in Missouri as well as Seades Arkansas
Prairie in (Yatskievych
1999;
The
pers. obs.). lack of records in some prairies may reflect the lack of survey
efforts by individuals familiar with the
species' field characters or the difficulty
n seeing the diagnostic inflorescences among
other
prairie vegetation. Searches
i
lor the species by the senior author Benton and
in five prairies in coun-
Pettis
Missouri earlyjune 2002
ties, in failed to yield additional populations. Searches
two
in additional Arkansas prairies by the authors on May 2003 and
9
five
m m
May
additional by Witsell Arkansas and June 2003 docu-
sites failed to
ment McKenzie and
the species additional Subsequently, however,
at localities.
Smith Morgan County and
discovered the species at Hite Prairie in Taberville
Prairie in Clair County, Missouri on 6 and June, 2003, respectively [McKen-
St. 7
(DOy
zie 2085 MO), 2090 (DOV, MO)]. These collections represent only the third
and The
fourth extant records of this sedge in Missouri. plants were difficult to
see at the two Missouri sites, however, because the 20 and 30 clumps with few
flowering culms had inflorescences leaning on or hidden among adjacent,
taller
mentioned
vegetation. Despite the limitations above, future searches
for C.
conoidea should be conducted in other high quality prairies throughout Ar-
May
kansas and Missouri from about to June depending on the latitude of
1 1
the locality to be surveyed.
Botanical nomenclature listed herein follows Yatskievych (1999) or
Yatskievych and Turner
(1990),
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We
Rob
Naczi Claude Herbarium, Delaware
are grateful to of E. Phillips State
and
University, Philip E. Hyatt, U.S. Forest Service, Atlanta, Georgia for their
T USDA-ARS
assistance with this report. Critical reviews by Charles Bryson,
Weed
Southern Science Research Unit, Stoneville, Mississippi, and an anony-
mous
reviewer improved an earlier draft of this manuscript.
REFERENCES
marragemerrt
Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission. 2002. Searles prairie natural area plan.
Arkansas Natural Heritage Comnriission. Rock.
Little
Arkansas Vascular Flora Committee, eds. 2002. Draft checklist of the vascular plants of Ar-
998. Arkansas Carex (Cyperaceae): annotated Sida 8:535-554.
Hyait, a briefly
P.E. list
1 1
Carbondale and
versity Press. Edwardsville.
Naczi, R.F.C. and C.T Bryson. 2002. Carex section Griseae.ln: P.W. Ball, K. Gandhi, R.W. Kiger, D.
Murray, J.L Zarucchi, A.A. Reznicek, J.L Strother, eds. Flora of North America North of
New
Mexico, vol. 23 Magnoliophyta: Commelinidae: Cyperaceae. Oxford Univ. Press,
York.Pp.448-46L
Radford, A.E., H.E. Ahles, and C.R. Bell. 964. Manual of the vascular flora of the Carolinas.
1
University of North Carolina Chapel
Press,
Hill.
Edition. Published by the author. Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Gymni
Michigan
972. Part
E.G. flora.
1
,, 1 .
and Michigan
Science University of H^
f
KiEVYCH, G. 999. Steyermarl<'s flora of Miss
1
nent of Conservation, Jefferson
City.
and Turner. 990. Catalogue
KifcVYCH, G.,
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1
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larden Systematic Bota
in
