Florida Whitetop

Rhynchospora floridensis is much like R. colorata, with which it is often associated; it can be easily distinguished by its strictly cespitose habit and its ciliolate spikelet scale keels.

Plants perennial, cespitose, 20–50 cm, wiry; rhizomes absent. Culms erect to spreading, leafy based; scapes nearly filiform, nearly trigonous, few ribbed. Leaves spreading to erect, exceeded by scape; blades filiform to linear, proximally flat or involute, becoming involute, 0.4–2 mm wide, apex tapering, trigonous. Inflorescences terminal, solitary, headlike, dense, white, leafy involucrate, 0.5–1 cm wide; involucral bracts 3–6, spreading to recurved, white based, green tipped, narrowly linear, longest bract elongate subulate, 4–8 cm × 2–5 mm. Spikelets white, ovoid, 4–6 mm; scales several, boat shaped, basal ones with ciliolate keel, fertile ones 3–3.8 mm. Flowers: perianth absent. Fruits 1–1.2 mm; body yellow to black, nearly orbicular, tumidly lenticular, 0.8–1 × 0.6–0.7(–1) mm; surface lattices short linear, vertical in fine undulating rows, with ends raised to rounded, transverse rugulosities; tubercle low triangular, lunate, 0.2–0.3 mm, apex acute, blunt or apiculate.

Fla.; Mexico (Chiapas, Yucatán); West Indies (Bahamas); Central America (Belize).

Fruiting spring–fall, or all year.

Moist open areas over reef limestones, rocky pine savanna; 0–50m.

Dichromena floridensis Britton in J. K. Small, Fl. S.E. U.S., 190. 1903

Rhynchospora floridensis là loài thực vật có hoa trong họ Cói. Loài này được (Britton ex Small) H.Pfeiff. miêu tả khoa học đầu tiên năm 1940.