Entry From
Flora of North America, Vol 23,
Names
Carex micropoda C. A. Meyer [family CYPERACEAE], Mém. Acad. Imp. Sci. St.-Pétersbourg Divers Savans, 1: 210, plate 6. 1831
Carex crandallii Gandoger [family CYPERACEAE]
Carex jacobi-peteri Hultén [family CYPERACEAE]
Carex pyrenaica Wahlenberg subsp. micropoda (C. A. Meyer) Hultén [family CYPERACEAE]
Carex pyrenaica var. mondsii Kelso [family CYPERACEAE]
Discussion
There is as much variation within the Rocky Mountain Carex crandallii as between C. crandallii and C. micropoda of Alaska and British Columbia. J. A. Calder and R. L. Taylor (1968) reported a weak distinction between a predominately distigmatic coastal race (“micropoda”) and a tristigmatic one (“pyrenaica”) from the interior. T. V. Egorova (1999) illustrated the shapes of perigynia for C. pyrenaica and C. micropoda, and the differences are consistent with what others have noted. Nevertheless, until a more reliable set of characters is found to distinguish these two taxa, all of the North American plants shall be treated as C. micropoda. W. A. Weber and R. C. Wittmann (1992) maintain the North American plants distinct from the European C. pyrenaica at the rank of species, a view that is accepted here. A thorough, worldwide review of relationships among taxa is warranted.