黑鳞薹草 hei lin tai cao

Rhizome short. Culms 10-20 cm tall, trigonous, firm, erect, scabrous above, clothed at base with pale brown bladeless sheaths. Leaves shorter than culm, ca. 1/2 length of culm, blades 2-4 mm wide, flat, apex acuminate. Lowest involucral bract setaceous, sheathless. Spikes 3 or 4, disposed in a capitate inflorescence; terminal spike gynaecandrous, oblong, 8-10 mm; lateral spikes female, globose or ovate to oblong, 5-10 cm. Female glumes blackish brown, ovate, 1-veined, margins narrowly white hyaline, apex subacute. Utricles ferruginous-brown, longer than glume, oblong-obovate or oblong-elliptic, trigonous, ca. 3 mm, membranous, nerveless, base cuneate, apex gradually tapering into a beak, orifice 2-toothed and white hyaline. Nutlets loosely enveloped, subovate, trigonous, ca. 1.5 mm; stigmas 3. Fl. and fr. Jul-Aug.

Wet places; 1800-2400 m. Xinjiang [N Mongolia, Russia (Far East, Siberia); C Asia].