Scleria lithosperma(L.) Sw.

Florida Keys nutrush

WFO wfo-0000551231 Accepted WFO 2026-06 3 photographs CC BY

Plate 1 figs. a–c · 1 observation

This species has been photographed under an open licence only 1 time, so some figures below are different views of the same plant, taken on the same day, rather than different individuals. They are usually different parts of it: the leaf, the flower, the bark.

Scleria lithosperma, photographed by Scott Ward
fig. a Scott Ward, CC BY 4.0 / 2021-10-31 / obs. 166712159
Scleria lithosperma, photographed by Scott Ward
fig. b Scott Ward, CC BY 4.0 / obs. 166712173
Scleria lithosperma, photographed by Scott Ward
fig. c Scott Ward, CC BY 4.0 / obs. 166712203

Every figure is a research-grade observation under CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA, rehosted with the photographer’s name, the licence and the observation it came from. Photographs under a NonCommercial licence are excluded from this site and are never stored, which costs us a great many pictures and is not negotiable.

Native range 75 botanical countries

Regions where Scleria lithosperma is native: Angola, Benin, Burkina, Comoros, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Nigeria, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia, China South-Central, China Southeast, Hainan, Taiwan, Andaman Is., Assam, Bangladesh, Borneo, Cambodia, East Himalaya, India, Jawa, Lesser Sunda Is., Malaya, Maluku, Myanmar, New Guinea, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Thailand, Vietnam, Northern Territory, Queensland, Florida, Louisiana, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Southeast, Mexico Southwest, Caroline Is., Fiji, Marianas, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, Wallis-Futuna Is., Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil North, Brazil West-Central, Cayman Is., Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Leeward Is., Nicaragua, Panamá, Puerto Rico, Trinidad-Tobago, Turks-Caicos Is., Venezuela, Venezuelan Antilles, Windward Is. AngolaBeninBurkinaDR CongoEthiopiaGhanaIvory CoastKenyaMadagascarMozambiqueNigeriaTanzaniaTogoZambiaChina South-CentralChina SoutheastHainanTaiwanAssamBangladeshBorneoCambodiaEast HimalayaIndiaJawaLesser Sunda Is.MalayaMalukuMyanmarNew GuineaPhilippinesSri LankaSulawesiSumateraThailandVietnamNorthern TerritoryQueenslandFloridaLouisianaMexico GulfMexico NortheastMexico SoutheastMexico SouthwestFijiBoliviaBrazil NorthBrazil West-CentralCosta RicaCubaDominican RepublicFrench GuianaGuatemalaHaitiHondurasJamaicaNicaraguaPanamáPuerto RicoTrinidad-TobagoVenezuela ComorosAndaman Is.Caroline Is.MarianasSamoaTongaVanuatuWallis-Futuna Is.BahamasCayman Is.Leeward Is.Turks-Caicos Is.Venezuelan AntillesWindward Is.
Native distribution of Scleria lithosperma, after Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants. Introduced, extinct and doubtful records are excluded, so this is where the plant is from, not everywhere it now grows. Regions too small to draw at this scale are marked with a dot.
RegionTDWG codeContinent
Bahamas BAH SOUTHERN AMERICA
Bolivia BOL
Brazil North BZN
Brazil West-Central BZC
Cayman Is. CAY
Costa Rica COS
Cuba CUB
Dominican Republic DOM
French Guiana FRG
Guatemala GUA
Haiti HAI
Honduras HON
Jamaica JAM
Leeward Is. LEE
Nicaragua NIC
Panamá PAN
Puerto Rico PUE
Trinidad-Tobago TRT
Turks-Caicos Is. TCI
Venezuela VEN
Venezuelan Antilles VNA
Windward Is. WIN
Andaman Is. AND ASIA-TROPICAL
Assam ASS
Bangladesh BAN
Borneo BOR
Cambodia CBD
East Himalaya EHM
India IND
Jawa JAW
Lesser Sunda Is. LSI
Malaya MLY
Maluku MOL
Myanmar MYA
New Guinea NWG
Philippines PHI
Sri Lanka SRL
Sulawesi SUL
Sumatera SUM
Thailand THA
Vietnam VIE
Angola ANG AFRICA
Benin BEN
Burkina BKN
Comoros COM
DR Congo ZAI
Ethiopia ETH
Ghana GHA
Ivory Coast IVO
Kenya KEN
Madagascar MDG
Mozambique MOZ
Nigeria NGA
Tanzania TAN
Togo TOG
Zambia ZAM
Caroline Is. CRL PACIFIC
Fiji FIJ
Marianas MRN
Samoa SAM
Tonga TON
Vanuatu VAN
Wallis-Futuna Is. WAL
Florida FLA NORTHERN AMERICA
Louisiana LOU
Mexico Gulf MXG
Mexico Northeast MXE
Mexico Southeast MXT
Mexico Southwest MXS
China South-Central CHC ASIA-TEMPERATE
China Southeast CHS
Hainan CHH
Taiwan TAI
Northern Territory NTA AUSTRALASIA
Queensland QLD

Region boundaries approximated from Natural Earth (public domain) and mapped to TDWG World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions (WGSRPD) level-3 botanical countries (Brummitt 2001). Indicative, not the official WGSRPD geometry.

Also published as 30 synonyms

A synonym is not an error. It is a record of botanists disagreeing, in print, about where this plant belongs. Each of these was somebody’s considered answer.

  • Carex lithosperma J.F.Gmel.
  • Carex subulata J.F.Gmel.
  • Carex tenuis (Retz.) J.F.Gmel.
  • Hypoporum capillare (R.Br.) Nees
  • Hypoporum gracile (Rich.) Torr.
  • Hypoporum lithospermum (L.) Nees
  • Hypoporum purpurascens Nees
  • Hypoporum sieberi Nees
  • Scirpus lithospermus L.
  • Scleria capillaris R.Br.
  • Scleria elongata J.Presl & C.Presl
  • Scleria filiformis Sw.
  • Scleria glaucescens J.Presl & C.Presl
  • Scleria gracilis Rich.
  • Scleria krugiana Boeckeler
  • Scleria lithosperma f. ramosa Domin
  • Scleria lithosperma subsp. linearis (Benth.) T.Koyama
  • Scleria lithosperma var. filiformis (Sw.) Britton
  • Scleria lithosperma var. multispiculata Govind.
  • Scleria lithosperma var. muricata Govind.
  • Scleria lithosperma var. roxburghii C.B.Clarke
  • Scleria margaritifera Gaertn.
  • Scleria pauciflora Sauvalle
  • Scleria purpurea Poir.

and 6 more.

Sourcesevery claim on this page

  1. World Flora Online Plant List. accepted name, authority, classification. CC0. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  2. iNaturalist. photographs and flowering annotations, CC0 / CC BY / CC BY-SA only. per photograph. Retrieved 2026-06-27.
  3. Wikidata. common name (P1843), joined on the World Flora Online identifier (P7715). CC0. Retrieved 2026-07-13.
  4. Kew, World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP v16). native distribution by TDWG level-3 botanical country, and life form. CC BY 3.0. Retrieved 2026-06-04.

We publish what we can source and we say so when we cannot. This page has no care advice and no toxicity claim, because we do not yet have those from a source we can cite.