Carex carsei Petrie
Original localities: "Swampy stations on the Waimarino Plain: H. Carse and H. B. Matthews! near Lake Tennyson (Southern Nelson): W. G. Morrison!" Lectotype: WELT, 32697, Waimarino Plain, not uncommon in bogs, H. Carse, 15 Jan., 1921; isotypes at CHR and CANTY.
Rhizomatous, far-creeping, forming a continuous grassy sward in swampy places; rhizome c. 1 mm. diam., light brown or grey. Culms 2.5–8.5–(25) cm. × 0.5–1 mm., trigonous, or ± compressed below, stiff, erect, glab., enclosed to more than ½ their length by the grey or cream lf-sheaths. Lvs much > culms, 1–2.5 mm. wide, channelled, grass-like, yellow-green, linear, narrowed to a subobtuse tip, margins very finely scabrid. Infl. of 3–5 spikes, clustered together in a head, or the lowermost spike often remote; terminal spike male, small, sessile; remaining spikes female, overtopping the male, 1–1.5 cm. long, on longer peduncles. Glumes much < utricles, broadly ovate, ± acute, membr., faintly many-nerved, pale yellow-brown with a green, not markedly thickened midrib. Utricles 7–8.5 × c. 2 mm., plano-convex to subtrigonous, narrow-lanceolate, many-nerved, light green to greenish brown, margins glab., tapering very gradually above to a beak 3–3.5 mm. long, with an oblique, bifid, finely scabrid orifice; stipe c. 1 mm. long, only slightly contracted. Stigmas 3. Nut c. 2 mm. long, obtusely trigonous, obovoid, light yellow-brown, shining.
DIST.: N. Near Lake Taupo and in Tongariro National Park. S. Nelson, Westland, Fiordland, and Southland.
In boggy ground.
The very long, light green to greenish brown utricles make this a most distinct sp.
