BC Conservation Data Centre: Conservation Status Report
Carex sprengelii
Sprengel's sedge
| Scientific Name: | Carex sprengelii |
|---|---|
| English Name: | Sprengel's sedge |
| Provincial Status Summary | |
| Status: | S3 |
| Date Status Assigned: | March 31, 2018 |
| Date Last Reviewed: | April 30, 2019 |
| Reasons: | The total number of known occurrences of Sprengel's sedge in British Columbia is 3, but their viabilty is unknown. The occurrences are in central and northeastern BC, one in Prince George another north-west of Williams Lake and a third northwest of Chetwynd at Moberly Lake. Population size is unknown. The range extent is XXX and the total area of occupancy is 16 square kilometres. Trends are unknown. The population at Moberly Lake is in an area of scheduled pipeline replacement, but a mitigation strategy is planned to protect the plants. |
| Range | |
| Range Extent: | 250-1000 square km |
| Range Extent Comments: | There are only two occurences therefore Range Extent cannot be calculated. |
| Area of Occupancy (km2): | <0.4 square km |
| Area of Occupancy Comments: | Using GIS tools, AOO index value is 2 cells (each 4 sq km) or 8 sq km. |
| Occurrences & Population | |
| Number of Occurrences: | 1 - 5 |
| Comments: | The total number of known occurrences is 4, one in Prince George, Quesnel, north-west of Williams Lake and a fourth at the Moberly River, northwest of Chetwynd. J.W. Eastham first observed and collected the first specimen in 1944 from a golf course in Prince George, and J.A. Calder, J.A. Parmelee, and R.L. Taylor collected a specimen from the edge of woods near Quesnel in 1956. In 1996, Anna Robers collected the plant from the east end of Williams Lake. Although observations are few, the taxon occurs in areas that are relatively far apart with extensive appropriate habitat in between. Additional populations possibly occur. |
| Number of Occurrences with Good Viability / Ecological Integrity: | Unknown what number of occurrences with good viability |
| Comments: | Two populations of Sprengel's sedge were observed in 1944 and 1956, and, because they have not been re-surveyed, there is no information on their viability. Herbarium specimens were made from both sites but details about viabilty were not made at that time. |
| Number of Occurrences Appropriately Protected & Managed: | Unknown whether any occurrences appropriately protected and managed |
| Comments: | Because the populations have not been relocated, their exact locations are unknown and an assessment of protection is not available. |
| Population Size: | Unknown |
| Comments: | Population size was not noted for the populations when they were observed. |
| Threats (to population, occurrences, or area affected) | |
| Degree of Threat: | Widespread, low-severity threat |
| Comments: | [C-Medium]The plants at Moberly River are on a right-of-way that will be subject to disturbance in summer 2011 due to pipe replacement, but a mitigation strategy will be developed to protect the population. Potential threats at all sites would include developments such as buildings or pond alteration on the golf course, livestock, roadwork or utility and service lines, logging or other forest use, recreational activities such as disturbance by golfers, invasive alien species, and pollution from road runoff. The scope, severity, and immediacy of threats is moderate. |
| Trend (in population, range, area occupied, and/or condition of occurrences) | |
| Short-Term Trend: | Unknown |
| Comments: | One population of Sprengel's sedge was discovered in 2010 and the other three occurrences have not been observed since 1944, 1956 and 1996. Information is not available to assess short-term trends cannot be assessed. However, these occurrences were reported from areas where disturbance since those dates could have been extensive (in a golf course and near a road, although one site was listed as at the edge of woods). |
| Long-Term Trend: | Unknown |
| Comments: |
One population of Sprengel's sedge was discovered in 2010 and the other two occurrences have not been observed since 1944 and 1956. Information is not available to assess short-term trends cannot be assessed. However, both were reported from areas where disturbance since those dates could have been extensive (in a golf course and near a road, although one site was listed as at the edge of woods). |
| Other Factors | |
| Intrinsic Vulnerability: | Not intrinsically vulnerable |
| Comments: | Sprengel's sedge probably matures quickly, reproduces frequently, and/or has high fecundity so that that populations probably recover quickly from decreases in abundance. It also successfully reproduces asexually via rhizomes. The wetland ecosystem favoured by this species tends to be resilient to changes in composition and structure and quickly recover. |
| Environmental Specificity: | Moderate. Generalist or community with some key requirements scarce. |
| Comments: | This species is often a wetland specialist but has been found in more diverse, often drier habitats than other similar species of Carex. Its key requirements (forests and forest openings, floodplain forests and riverbanks, lakeshores, thickets, meadows, and roadsides, as well as other abiotic and/or biotic factors) for this species are common within the generalized range of the species. |
| Other Rank Considerations: | |
| Information Gaps | |
| Research Needs: | Research needs include assessing the size, viability, and reproductive success of the known EOs, and assessing threats at the known sites. A monitoring program should be designed and implemented. |
| Inventory Needs: | Surveys of the three known sites for Sprengel's sedge are recommended so that that threats and accurate estimations of population size and health can be determined. The habitat needs to be more clearly described and defined. New sites need to be sought through targeted surveys in central British Columbia in high potential habitat in late summer and autumn. |
| Stewardship | |
| Protection: | Protection needs are required to be evaluated after the populations are revisited and described. The exact location of both occurrences needs to be confirmed so that it can be determined whether this species is protected or whether legislation exists that could aid in protecting it. |
| Management: | Management needs are required to be evaluated after the populations are revisited and described. Protection can be achieved through voluntary stewardship agreements, purchase from willing sellers, and land use designations on Crown lands. A primary objective should be to protect all known populations. Maintaining multiple populations will help to mitigate the effects of catastrophic loss at any one site. Reserves should be large enough to maintain natural communities and ecological processes that sustain the plant populations. If protection of all populations is not considered feasible, sites could be prioritized based on numbers of plants present, productivity of site, and significance of site for maintaining species distribution. |
| Version | |
| Author: | McIntosh, T.T. and M. Donovan |
| Date: | May 26, 2011 |
| References | |
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Batten, R. 2018. Vascular plant GeoCAT range extent and index of AOO maps supporting status assessment 2017_18 for British Columbia Conservation Data Centre. March 2018. Victoria, BC. 450 pp.
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Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for information on how the CDC determines conservation status ranks. For global conservation status reports and ranks, please visit the NatureServe website http://www.natureserve.org/.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 2011. Conservation Status Report: Carex sprengelii. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Jun 5, 2026).