Eleocharis suksdorfiana
Suksdorf's spikerush
Family: Cyperaceae · Type: Grass · Native
Eleocharis suksdorfiana (Suksdorf's spikerush) is a native California grass in the Cyperaceae family, recognized by montane habitat, large spikelets, long anthers, and beaked fruits.
Suksdorf's spikerush is a California native perennial found in northwestern California, high Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, San Francisco Bay Area, Transverse Ranges, and Desert Mountains in wet meadows, fens, and springs at elevations below 3,400 meters. Flowering during summer, this plant produces small greenish-brown spikelets 5 to 10 millimeters long with delicate flower bracts. Growing 4 to 40 centimeters tall with erect, slender stems that are cylindric to slightly flat, it emerges from a weak rhizome with a hard caudex. Its distal leaf sheaths are firm and persistent, with tips that are subtly truncate to obtuse. The fruit is 2 to 2.7 millimeters long, three-sided, with a narrow, beak-like tip and often accompanied by six perianth bristles.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 25 sympatric species; key features are montane habitat, large spikelets, long anthers, and beaked fruits
Habitat and range
Habitat: Often subdominant but local. Wet meadows, fens, springs
Elevation: < 3400 m
Outside California: to British Columbia, northwestern Montana, Colorado
Bloom period
Eleocharis suksdorfiana blooms Summer.
How to tell it apart
vs Carex: Eleocharis has single spikelet with no bracts below, Carex has leafy bracts and multiple spikes.; vs Isolepis: Eleocharis has no bracts below spikelet, Isolepis has conspicuous leaf-like bracts extending beyond flowers.; vs Schoenoplectus: Eleocharis has single terminal spikelet, Schoenoplectus has multiple spikelets in clusters.; vs Juncus: Eleocharis spikelets are flattened oval, Juncus flowers are round with visible petals in clusters.; vs Equisetum: Eleocharis has grass-like stems with flower spikelets, Equisetum has jointed hollow stems with cone-like structures.
Frequently asked questions
Is Eleocharis suksdorfiana native to California?
Yes. Eleocharis suksdorfiana is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Eleocharis suksdorfiana bloom?
Eleocharis suksdorfiana blooms Summer.
What plant family does Eleocharis suksdorfiana belong to?
Eleocharis suksdorfiana is in the Cyperaceae family, genus Eleocharis.
What habitat does Eleocharis suksdorfiana grow in?
Eleocharis suksdorfiana grows in Often subdominant but local. Wet meadows, fens, springs.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
- Eleocharis tenuis var. tenuis — Slender spikerush
- Eleocharis torticulmis — California twisted spikerush
- Eleocharis acicularis — Needle spikerush
- Eleocharis acicularis var. acicularis — Needle spike rush
- Eleocharis acicularis var. gracilescens — Needle spike rush
- Eleocharis acicularis var. occidentalis — Needle spike rush
- Eriophorum gracile — Slender cottongrass
- Eriophorum sp. — Cotton grass
Sources: Jepson eFlora · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.