''Carex stricta'' is a species of
sedge known by the common names upright sedge and tussock sedge. The plant grows in moist
marsh
In ecology, a marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous plants rather than by woody plants.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p More in genera ...
es,
forest
A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...
s and alongside bodies of water.
[''Carex stricta''.](_blank)
Study of Northern Virginia Ecology. Fairfax County Public Schools. It grows up to tall and wide. When the
leaves
A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...
die, they build on top of or around the living plant, making a "tussock".
Widely distributed in and east of the Great Plains, it is one of the most common wetland sedges in eastern North America.
Their
seed
In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...
s are carried by the
wind
Wind is the natural movement of atmosphere of Earth, air or other gases relative to a planetary surface, planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heatin ...
. When seeds land, they are eaten by birds such as
dark-eyed junco,
northern cardinal
The northern cardinal (''Cardinalis cardinalis''), also commonly known as the common cardinal, red cardinal, or simply cardinal, is a bird in the genus ''Cardinalis''. It can be found in southeastern Canada, through the eastern United States fro ...
,
wild turkey, and
duck
Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family (biology), family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and goose, geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfam ...
s such as
mallard and
wood duck
The wood duck or Carolina duck (''Aix sponsa'') is a partially migratory species of perching duck found in North America. The male is one of the most colorful North American waterfowls.
Taxonomy
The wood duck was Species description, formal ...
. The seeds are also eaten by
squirrels and other mammals.
The plant can also
reproduce vegetatively via
rhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and Shoot (botany), shoots from its Node (botany), nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from ...
s, and often form
colonies.
It is a larval host to the
black dash, the
dun skipper, and the
eyed brown.
[The Xerces Society (2016), ''Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects'', Timber Press.]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15615554
stricta
Flora of the United States
Flora of Canada
Plants described in 1792