Scleria oligantha

Scleria oligantha
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class:	Liliopsida – Monocotyledons
Order:	Cyperales
Family:	Cyperaceae
Genus:	Scleria
Species:	S. oligantha
Binomial name
Scleria oligantha Michx.
Natural range of Scleria oligantha from USDA NRCS Plants Database.

Common name: littlehead nutrush

Description

A description of Scleria oligantha is provided in The Flora of North America.

Ecology

Habitat

Scleria oligantha can be found in limestone glades, mesic deciduous woodlands, beech-oak-hickory-magnolia woodlands, cabbage palm hammocks, calcareous woods, floodplains, mixed pine-hardwood forests, hydric hammocks, oak-sweetgum ridges, pine flatwoods, seepage areas, shallow soils on rock outcrops, dry limestone outcrops, mesic woods, loblolly pinewoods, and river bluffs (FSU Herbarium). It can also be found in powerline corridors, cleared beech woods, and roadsides. Soil types include sandy loam, loam, loamy soil, loamy sand, and sandy clay loam (FSU Herbarium). Associated species include Juniperus, Cornus, Cercis, Aristida, Smilax pumila, Carex, Schoenus nigricans, Acer saccharum, Gaura filipes, Fraxinus pennsylvanica, Liquidambar, Rubus argutus, Festuca, Lespedeza cuneata, Senecio, Cirsium, Plantago, Verbena brasiliensis, Verbesina, Specularia, Bromus, Pteridium aquilinum, Wahlenbergia marginata, Heliotropium amplexicaule, and Mollugo verticillata (FSU Herbarium).

Phenology

Flowers and fruits March through August (FSU Herbarium).

Use by animals

S. oligantha was one of the plant species observed in deer and cattle diets in Louisiana (Thrill et al 1983).

References and notes

Florida State University Robert K. Godfrey Herbarium database. URL: http://herbarium.bio.fsu.edu. Last accessed: Collectors: States and Counties: Compiled by Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy.