SPECIES:  Carex saxatilis

• Introductory
• Distribution and Occurrence
• Management Considerations
• Botanical and Ecological Characteristics
• Fire Ecology
• Fire Effects
• References

Introductory
SPECIES: Carex saxatilis



AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION : 
Williams, Tara Y. 1990. Carex saxatilis. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. 
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, 
Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). 
Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/ [].




ABBREVIATION : 
CARSAX

SYNONYMS : 
   Carex saxatilis var. major (Olney)


SCS PLANT CODE : 
   CASA10
   CASAM
   CASAM2
   CASAR
   CASAS7


COMMON NAMES : 
   russet sedge


TAXONOMY : 
The currently accepted scientific name of russet sedge is Carex
saxatilis L. [21].  Varieties are [23]:

        C. s. var. major Olney
        C. s. var. miliaris (Michx.) Bailey
        C. s. var. rhomalea Fern.
        C. s. var. saxatilis
                


LIFE FORM : 
Graminoid

FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS : 
No special status

OTHER STATUS : 
Russet sedge is rare in Glacier National Park, Montana [13].

Carex saxatilis var. major is ranked by The Nature Conservancy as
globally secure (G5) but imperiled in the state of Washington (S2).

DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Carex saxatilis



GENERAL DISTRIBUTION : 
Russet sedge is circumboreal.  Although essentially an arctic species,
its range extends south to Washington, Utah, Colorado, New York, and
Maine [6,9].


ECOSYSTEMS : 
   FRES23  Fir - spruce
   FRES26  Lodgepole pine
   FRES37  Mountain meadows
   FRES44  Alpine


STATES : 
     AK  CO  ID  ME  MT  NV  UT  WA  WY  AB
     BC  MB  NB  NS  NT  ON  PQ  YT



BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS : 
    6  Upper Basin and Range
    8  Northern Rocky Mountains
    9  Middle Rocky Mountains
   11  Southern Rocky Mountains


KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS : 
   K008  Lodgepole pine - subalpine forest
   K015  Western spruce - fir forest
   K052  Alpine meadows and barren


SAF COVER TYPES : 
   206  Engelmann spruce - subalpine fir
   218  Lodgepole pine


SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES : 
NO-ENTRY


HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES : 
Russet sedge can be a dominant in wetland meadow communities [14,16,17].

MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS
SPECIES: Carex saxatilis





IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Russet sedge communities provide moderate herbage production (840 to
1,160 pounds per acre [720-1,305 kg/ha]).  Cattle and elk use has been
noted.  The wet soils it occurs in decrease its grazing value [7,16].
In Iceland it rates as very good pasturage, even in winter [10].


PALATABILITY : 
The palatability of russet sedge is relatively low [7,8].  It is more
palatable than beaked sedge (Carex rostrata) and less palatable than
water sedge (Carex aquatilis) [16].  In Iceland it rates as very good
pasturage, even in winter [10].


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


COVER VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Russet sedge may be useful for revegetation of degraded riparian sites
at high elevations.  Once established, it provides excellent soil
stability because of its long creeping rhizomes [7].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
NO-ENTRY


OTHER MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
The russet sedge community type appears to be a stable one with species
compositions only slightly impacted by past livestock grazing.  Because
of the organic, wet soils, use of heavy machinery should be avoided in
russet sedge communities [16].

BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Carex saxatilis



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Russet sedge, a native perennial grasslike plant, grows 8 to 30 inches
(20-80 cm) tall.  It is a turf-forming, perennial sedge with
well-developed, creeping rhizomes.  It has separate staminate and
pistillate spikes.  The achenes are trigonous. [7,9,21].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Geophyte


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Russet sedge reproduces vegetatively by rhizomes and sexually by seed
[7].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Russet sedge grows in wet meadows and boggy areas, especially near
streams and lakes at high elevations [9,13,19,21].  It is often a
codominant in water sedge associations [16,17].  It is more common on
wetter than less wet sites [11].  Russet sedge grows on poorly developed
soils along shores and on organic substrates [7,16].  The water level
may be aboveground through spring and early summer [17].  Its
elevational range is 9,300 to 12,000 feet (2,835-3,660 m) in Utah and
Colorado and 4,800 to 5,600 feet (1,465-1,710 m) in Montana [2].

Russet sedge is often associated with water sedge and other sedges
(Carex spp.), bluejoint reedgrass (Calamagrostis canadensis), tufted
hairgrass (Deschamsia caespitosa), variableleaf pondweed (Potamogeton
gramineus), subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa), lodgepole pine (Pinus
contorta), Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii), and quaking aspen
(Populus tremuloides) [16,17].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
NO-ENTRY


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Russet sedge has mature fruit in late July and August [13].

FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Carex saxatilis



FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS : 
Russet sedge occurs on sites with a low fire regime [13].


POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY : 
   Rhizomatous herb, rhizome in soil

FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Carex saxatilis



IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT : 
NO-ENTRY


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT : 
NO-ENTRY


PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE : 
NO-ENTRY


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE : 
NO-ENTRY


FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
NO-ENTRY

REFERENCES
SPECIES: Carex saxatilis



REFERENCES : 

 .  Bernard, Stephen R.; Brown, Kenneth F. 1977. Distribution of mammals,
       reptiles, and amphibians by BLM physiographic regions and A.W. Kuchler's
       associations for the eleven western states. Tech. Note 301. Denver, CO:
       U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management. 169 p. 
       [434]

 .  Dittberner, Phillip L.; Olson, Michael R. 1983. The plant information
       network (PIN) data base: Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, Utah, and
       Wyoming. FWS/OBS-83/86. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of the Interior,
       Fish and Wildlife Service. 786 p.  [806]

 .  Ebersole, James J. 1987. Short-term vegetation recovery at an Alaskan
       arctic coastal plain site. Arctic and Alpine Research. 19(4): 442-450. 
       [9476]

 .  Eyre, F. H., ed. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and
       Canada. Washington, DC: Society of American Foresters. 148 p.  [905]

 .  Garrison, George A.; Bjugstad, Ardell J.; Duncan, Don A.; [and others].
       1977. Vegetation and environmental features of forest and range
       ecosystems. Agric. Handb. 475. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
       Agriculture, Forest Service. 68 p.  [998]

 .  Graff, Paul W. 1922. Unreported plants from Glacier National Park.
       Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. 49: 175-181.  [12964]

 .  Hansen, Paul L.; Chadde, Steve W.; Pfister, Robert D. 1988. Riparian
       dominance types of Montana. Misc. Publ. No. 49. Missoula, MT: University
       of Montana, School of Forestry, Montana Forest and Conservation
       Experiment Station. 411 p.  [5660]

 .  Hermann, Frederick J. 1970. Manual of the Carices of the Rocky Mountains
       and Colorado Basin. Agric. Handb. 374. Washington, DC: U.S. Department
       of Agriculture, Forest Service. 397 p.  [1139]

 .  Hitchcock, C. Leo; Cronquist, Arthur; Ownbey, Marion. 1959. Vascular
       plants of the Pacific Northwest. Part 4: Ericaceae through
       Campanulaceae. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press. 510 p. 
       [1170]

.  Ingvasson, P. A. 1969. The golden sedges of Iceland. World Crops. 21:
       218-220.  [14132]

.  Kershaw, K. A. 1974. Studies on lichen-dominated systems. X. The sedge
       meadows of the coastal raised beaches. Canadian Journal of Botany. 52:
       1947-1972.  [12966]

.  Kuchler, A. W. 1964. Manual to accompany the map of potential vegetation
       of the conterminous United States. Special Publication No. 36. New York:
       American Geographical Society. 77 p.  [1384]

.  Lesica, Peter. 1984. Rare vascular plants of Glacier National Park,
       Montana. Missoula, MT: University of Montana, Department of Botany. 27
       p.  [12049]

.  Lewis, Mont E. 1970. Alpine rangelands of the Uinta Mountains. Ogden,
       UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Region 4. 75 p. 
       [1451]

.  Lyon, L. Jack; Stickney, Peter F. 1976. Early vegetal succession
       following large northern Rocky Mountain wildfires. In: Proceedings, Tall
       Timbers fire ecology conference and Intermountain Fire Research Council
       fire and land management symposium; 1974 October 8-10; Missoula, MT. No.
       14. Tallahassee, FL: Tall Timbers Research Station: 355-373.  [1496]

.  Padgett, Wayne G.; Youngblood, Andrew P.; Winward, Alma H. 1989.
       Riparian community type classification of Utah and southeastern Idaho.
       R4-Ecol-89-01. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest
       Service, Intermountain Region. 191 p.  [11360]

.  Pierce, John; Johnson, Janet. 1986. Wetland community type
       classification for west-central Montana. Missoula, MT: U.S. Department
       of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Region, Ecosystem Management
       Program. 158 p. [Review draft].  [7436]

.  Raunkiaer, C. 1934. The life forms of plants and statistical plant
       geography. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 632 p.  [2843]

.  Voss, Edward G. 1972. Michigan flora. Part I. Gymnosperms and monocots.
       Bloomfield Hills, MI: Cranbrook Institute of Science; Ann Arbor, MI:
       University of Michigan Herbarium. 488 p.  [11471]

.  U.S. Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service. 1994. Plants
       of the U.S.--alphabetical listing. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
       Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service. 954 p.  [23104]

.  Welsh, Stanley L.; Atwood, N. Duane; Goodrich, Sherel; Higgins, Larry
       C., eds. 1987. A Utah flora. Great Basin Naturalist Memoir No. 9. Provo,
       UT: Brigham Young University. 894 p.  [2944]

.  Stickney, Peter F. 1989. Seral origin of species originating in northern
       Rocky Mountain forests. Unpublished draft on file at: U.S. Department of
       Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station, Fire
       Sciences Laboratory, Missoula, MT; RWU 4403 files. 7 p.  [20090]

.  Kartesz, John T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of
       the United States, Canada, and Greenland. Volume II--thesaurus. 2nd ed.
       Portland, OR: Timber Press. 816 p.  [23878]

.  Washington Natural Heritage Program, compiler. 1994. Endangered,
       threatened, and sensitive vascular plants of Washington. Olympia, WA:
       Department of Natural Resources. 52 p.  [25413]