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long, composed of a single spike or up to 3 spikes forming a short cluster; lowest 1 or 
2 leafy involucral bracts shorter than the inflorescence or rarely slightly exceeding it, 
to c. 1.5 cm long. Spikes androgynous with upper male portion often half-hidden by 
the female portion, 6-10 mm long, 1-3 per inflorescence, few-flowered. Male bracts 
('glumes') c. 4 mm long, pale yellow-brown to pale red-brown, with apex acute and 
mucro c. 0.3 mm long; female bracts ('glumes') 3-4 mm long, pale yellow-brown to 
red-brown, with apex acute and mucro 0.5-1 mm long. Stamens 3; anthers c. 2 mm 
long excluding apical appendage c. 0.2 mm long. Utricles ovate in outline, plano¬ 
convex, thickened near base, strongly 8-10-nerved on abaxial surface, not or faintly 
few-nerved adaxially, exceeding the subtending bract, 5.5-7 mm long, 1.7-2 mm diam. 
in broadest part, green to yellow-brown, eventually grey-brown, shining when mature; 
beak long-tapering, more or less excurved eventually, slightly hispidulous on margins, 
with 2-fid or split apex. Style 2-fid. Nut narrow-elhptical to obovate in outline, with 
obuse apex, plano-convex, 2-2.5 mm long, 1.3-1.5 mm diam., pale brown. Figure 2. 
Distribution and habitat: Known from only three locations, near Blackheath (about 
1000 m altitude), Mt Werong (1200 m), and Penrose (about 600 m alt.), on the Central 
Tablelands of New South Wales. In all locations, it was growing mixed with other 
native sedges and rushes in undisturbed swamps on sandstone. 
Fig. 1. Holotype of Carex klaphakei. 
