Cyperus trachysanthos

Cyperus trachysanthos NatureServe Explorer Species Reports — NatureServe Explorer is a source for authoritative conservation information on more than 50,000 plants, animals and ecological communtities of the U.S and Canada. NatureServe Explorer provides in-depth information on rare and endangered species, but includes common plants and animals too. NatureServe Explorer is a product of NatureServe in collaboration with the Natural Heritage Network.

ITIS Reports — Cyperus trachysanthos ITIS (the Integrated Taxonomic Information System) is a source for authoritative taxonomic information on plants, animals, fungi, and microbes of North America and the world.

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Cyperus trachysanthos is a rare species of sedge known by the common names pu`uka`a and sticky flatsedge. It is endemic to Hawaii, where it is known from Kauai and Oahu. It was known from Niihau, Molokai and Lanai, but it has been extirpated from these islands.It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.

This plant is a rhizomatous perennial flowering plant which produces clumps of stems up to about 45 centimeters in maximum height. There are plentiful hairlike green leaves which may be longer than the stems. The inflorescence is made up of a few heads of up to 30 spikelets each. The spikelet is about a centimeter long and has up to 20 yellow-brown flowers covered by yellow-brown to reddish glumes.The plant grows in wetland habitat such as seeps, mudflats, and marshes. Hau (Hibiscus tiliaceus) is often found alongside the sedge. Generally, the habitat is seasonally dry.