Plants perennial, mostly densely cespitose, 20–70 cm, base deep rich redbrown; rhizomes absent. Culms erect to ascending, leafy, stiff. Leaves shorter than scape; blades narrowly linear, (1–)2–3 mm wide, margins involute, apex trigonous, tapering. Inflorescences: clusters 1–2, if 2 then close together, dense, broadly turbinate to hemispheric or lobedglobose; primary leafy bract linear, stiff, exceeding clusters. Spikelets light to dark redbrown, lanceovoid, 3.5–6 mm, apex acuminate; fertile scales ovate, convex, 3–3.5(–4) mm, apex acuminate, low midrib excurrent or not. Flowers: perianth bristles 6, reaching at least to tubercle base, plumose from base to more than 1/2 length of fruit body. Fruits 1(–2) per spikelet, (2–)2.5–2.8(–3) mm; body redbrown or brown, tumidly obovoid, (1.5–)2–2.2 × 1–1.7 mm; surfaces interruptedly transversely rugulose; tubercle broadly conic, 0.5–0.8(–1) mm, base broadly 2lobed, apex often apiculate.
