Vascular Plants of North Carolina
Account for Small's Beaksedge - Rhynchospora pinetorum   Britton & Small
Members of Cyperaceae:
Members of Rhynchospora with account distribution info or public map:
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Section 5 » Family Cyperaceae
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AuthorBritton & Small
DistributionSouthern outer Coastal Plain only, known from just 5 counties.

Coastal Plain, NC to FL and eastern TX; West Indies.
AbundanceRare, to locally uncommon (where well-managed). The NCNHP database has 17 records, all extant, and many are in fair to excellent condition.
HabitatWet pine savannas, especially where underlain by limestone or coquina.
PhenologyFlowering and fruiting July-September.
IdentificationSmall's Beaksedge is closely related to R. globularis; it is told from that species by the seed bristles at least 2/3 the length of the seed body (vs. usually less than 1/2 the seed body length in R. globularis).
Taxonomic CommentsIn recent decades, this species has been split out from R. globularis. A synonym is R. globularis var. pinetorum.

Members of the genus Rhynchospora -- mainly called beaksedges but also called beakrushes -- are mostly Coastal Plain in distribution and are important members of our longleaf pine savannas, flatwoods, streamheads, depression ponds, Carolina bays, and beaver ponds. They vary from small and wiry to large and coarse. Keys concentrate on features of the achenes (seeds) and the shape and arrangement of the flower clusters (spikelets). The seeds may or not have bristles at their base; bristle number, length, and toothing are critical characters. Size and shape of the seed beaks is also critical. The drawings in Godfrey & Wooten (1979) are extremely helpful. The genus now includes Dichromena, the white-topped sedges.
Other Common Name(s)Many references still use Globe Beaksedge, but that is the common name generally in use for the "parent" species -- R. globularis.
State RankS2
Global RankG5?T3T4 [G3G4]
State StatusSR-T
US Status
USACE-agcp
USACE-emp
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B.A. SorrieOnslow County, Sandy Run Natural Area, in slight depressions and roadbeds. OnslowPhoto_natural
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