Carex confertospicata Boeckeler, Bot. Jahrb. Syst.

Jiménez-Mejías, Pedro, Alegría-Olivera, J. José, Beltrán, Hamilton W., Cano, Asunción, Granda-Paucar, Arturo, Maldonado Fonkén, Mónica S., Riva-Regalado, Sebastián, Ruthsatz, Barbara & Escudero, Marcial, 2020, Chorological and nomenclatural notes on Peruvian Carex (Cyperaceae), Caldasia 42 (1), pp. 63-69 : 65-66

= Carex confertospicata Boeckeler, Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 8: 206. 1887.

Lectotype (here designated): COLOMBIA. Am Bordoncillo , 3200 m, 20 Feb 1881, F. C. Lehmann 573 ( BM barcode 000617145 digital image!).

Iconography: Ball and Reznicek (2002: 429).

Material studied. PERU. Huánuco: Lauricocha, San Miguel de Caurí, Oconal de Añaspampa , 3915 m, 8 Oct 2002, F. Salvador et al. 474 ( USM) . La Libertad: Pataz, Puerta del Monte , ruta de Huaylillas, 3200 m, 22 May 1961, A. López & A. Sagástegui 3453 ( HUT); Pataz, Parcoy , cercanías del puesto de vigilancia de Ventanas, 3770-3950 m, 6 Jun 2001, B. León et al. 5043 ( USM). San Martín: Mariscal Cáceres, Huicungo , valle de Ruibarbos, 3600-3640 m, 7 O 58’ 30’’ S 77 O 22’ 8’’ W, 12 Jun 2001, B. León & K. Young 5178 ( USM); Mariscal Cáceres, Pastizales de La Empedrada , 3750-3785 m, 27 Jul 2000, B. León & K. Young 4582 ( USM); Mariscal Cáceres, Puerta del Monte, NW corner of Río Abiseo National Park , 3450 m, 10 Jul 1987, K. Young & B. León 4338 ( USM); Mariscal Cáceres, campamento chochos y laguna de Chochos y alrededores en el P. N. del Río Abiseo , 3200-3600 m, 27 Jun 1996, A. Cano et al. 7345 ( USM) .

Notes: A mainly circumboreal species showing a striking trans-Caribbean disjunction, being present in the mountains of Panama and northern South America. This remarkable disjunction pattern is shared with four other species of Carex , i.e., C. buxbaumii Wahlenb. , C. leptalea Wahlenb. , C. limosa L., and C. lurida Wahlenb. ( Jiménez-Mejías et al. 2018) . Here we present the southernmost records of the species, confirming its presence in Peru.

The Neotropical populations of C. livida were considered a different species called C. confertospicata ( Govaerts and Simpson 2007) . However, the careful comparison with Northern Hemisphere materials of C. livida reveals that there are no differences between the Boreal and Neotropical populations (Reznicek pers. comm., Jiménez-Mejías pers. obs.). Accordingly, we agree in considering the name C. confertospicata as a heterotypic synonym of C. livida .