Twisted Sedge
Carex torta
Found in rocky streambeds, often dominant in patches in the beds of mountain streams, along their banks, and on rocky or cobbly islands. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you
65
Strong
Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 100%
- Height
- About 2.8 feet
- Light
- Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Moist to wet
At a glance
- Bloom
- April to June
- Fruiting season
- Summer
JFMAMJJASOND
Not yet recorded · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves
Recorded in 50 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Streams, rivers and their banks
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 134 animals.
- American CrowCorvus brachyrhynchos
- American WoodcockScolopax minor
- Bald EagleHaliaeetus leucocephalus
- Baltimore OrioleIcterus galbula
- Barred OwlStrix varia
- Black VultureCoragyps atratus
- Black-capped ChickadeePoecile atricapillus
- Blue-winged WarblerVermivora pinus
- Broad-winged HawkButeo platypterus
- Brown ThrasherToxostoma rufum
- Canada GooseBranta canadensis
- CanvasbackAythya valisineria
- Carolina ChickadeePoecile carolinensis
- Chipping SparrowSpizella passerina
- Common GrackleQuiscalus quiscula
- Common RavenCorvus corax
- Eastern TowheePipilo erythrophthalmus
- Eastern Wood-peweeContopus virens
- Golden-winged WarblerVermivora chrysoptera
- Great Crested FlycatcherMyiarchus crinitus
- Hermit ThrushCatharus guttatus
- Hooded WarblerWilsonia citrina
- Indigo BuntingPasserina cyanea
- Least FlycatcherEmpidonax minimus
Ecological relationships
Who uses this plant?
31CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Carex
- Acronicta insularisHenry's Marsh Moth, Cattail Caterpillar
- Amolita roseolaPink Sedge Moth, Rosy Grass Moth
- Amphipoea americanaAmerican Ear Moth, American Borer
- Amphipoea interoceanicaStrawberry Cutworm, Interoceanic Ear Moth
- Anatrytone loganDelaware Skipper, Logan Skipper, Black-Vein Skipper
- Apamea indocilisIgnorant Apamea
- Apamea sordensBordered Apamea, Rustic Shoulder-Knot
- Cercyonis pegalaCommon Wood Nymph
- Deltote belliculaBurnished Bog Moth, Bog Deltote, Bog Lithacodia
- Euphyes bimaculaTwo-Spotted Skipper, Two-Spotted Sedge Skipper
Show all 31
- Euphyes dionDion Skipper, Sedge Skipper
- Euphyes dukesiDukes' Skipper
- Euphyes vestrisDun Skipper, Dun Sedge Skipper, Sedge Witch)\
- Helotropha reniformisAmerican Crescent Borer, Reniform Celaena, Reniform Helotropha
- Hesperia leonardusLeonard's Skipper, Blazing Star Skipper, Pawnee Prairie Skipper, Pawnee Montane Skipper
- Lethe appalachiaAppalachian Brown, Appalachian Eyed Brown
- Leucania phragmitidicolaNeedle Wainscot, Phragmites Wainscot
- Limochores mysticLong Dash
- Loscopia velataVeiled Ear Moth, Veiled Grass Moth
- Macrochilo absorptalisSlant-Lined Owlet; Slant-Lined Fan-foot
- Maliattha synochitisBlack-Dotted Lithacodia, Black-Dotted Glyph, Brass-Dotted Grass Moth
- Meropleon diversicolorMulticolored Sedgeminer
- Mythimna oxygalaLesser Wainscot
- Neonympha mitchelliiMitchell's Satyr
- Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
- Plusia putnamiPutnam's Looper Moth, Lempke's Gold Spot
- Poanes viatorBroad-Winged Skipper
- Pseudeustrotia carneolaPink-Barred Lithacodia, Pink-Barred Pseudeustrotia
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
- Cosmopterix clemensella
- Donacaula dispersella
1BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Carex
Individual names are not available yet.
Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
50BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Carex
- Acanthis flammeaCommon Redpoll
- Agelaius phoeniceusRed-winged Blackbird
- Ammospiza leconteiiLeConte's Sparrow
- Anas acutaNorthern Pintail
- Anas creccaGreen-winged Teal
- Anas platyrhynchosMallard
- Anas rubripesAmerican Black Duck
- Anser albifronsGreater White-fronted Goose
- Anser caerulescensSnow Goose
- Anser rossiiRoss's Goose
Show all 50
- Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
- Anthus spragueiiSprague's Pipit
- Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
- Branta canadensisCanada Goose
- Calcarius lapponicusLapland Longspur
- Calcarius ornatusChestnut-collared Longspur
- Calcarius pictusSmith's Longspur
- Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
- Cardinalis cardinalisNorthern Cardinal
- Centrocercus urophasianusGreater Sage-Grouse
- Colinus virginianusNorthern Bobwhite
- Cygnus buccinatorTrumpeter Swan
- Cygnus columbianusTundra Swan
- Dendragapus obscurusDusky Grouse
- Falcipennis canadensisSpruce Grouse
- Fulica americanaAmerican Coot
- Haemorhous mexicanusHouse Finch
- Junco hyemalisDark-eyed Junco
- Lagopus lagopusWillow Ptarmigan
- Lagopus leucuraWhite-tailed Ptarmigan
- Lagopus mutaRock Ptarmigan
- Leucosticte atrataBlack Rosy-Finch
- Mareca americanaAmerican Wigeon
- Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
- Melospiza melodiaSong Sparrow
- Molothrus aterBrown-headed Cowbird
- Pheucticus ludovicianusRose-breasted Grosbeak
- Pinicola enucleatorPine Grosbeak
- Pipilo maculatusSpotted Towhee
- Plectrophenax nivalisSnow Bunting
- Pooecetes gramineusVesper Sparrow
- Porzana carolinaSora
- Rallus limicolaVirginia Rail
- Rhynchophanes mccowniiMcCown's Longspur
- Spatula discorsBlue-winged Teal
- Spinus psaltriaLesser Goldfinch
- Spizella passerinaChipping Sparrow
- Spizelloides arboreaAmerican Tree Sparrow
- Zonotrichia atricapillaGolden-crowned Sparrow
- Zonotrichia leucophrysWhite-crowned Sparrow
Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Growing and identification
Plant details
- Family
- Cyperaceae
- Flower color
- Green
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Growth habit
- Spreads by rhizomes
- Foliage color
- Green
- Fruit begins
- Summer
- Fruit ends
- Summer
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “April to June” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit ends · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth habit · “Spreads by rhizomes” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Slow” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Height · “About 2.8 feet” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Light · “Partial shade; Full shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil · “Moist; Wet (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Streambed Sedge
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | S4 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
In your garden
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Choose a county to begin.
Growing cautions
- Spreads by rhizomes. USDA PLANTS lists its growth form as rhizomatous. USDA PLANTS
For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.
Sources
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications