Rhizome with slender stolons. Culms tufted, 15-30 cm tall, slender, compressed trigonous, smooth. Basal sheaths pale brown or brown, split into fibers. Leaves shorter than culm, blades 1.5-2.5 mm wide, flat, scabrid adaxially and along margins. Involucral bracts bristlelike, shorter than subtending spike, sheathed, sheaths 5-7 mm. Spikes 2 or 3, spaced; terminal spike male, sometimes close to next female spike, narrowly cylindric or clavate, 12-18 × 2-3 mm, with peduncle 0.4-2.5 cm; lateral spikes female, cylindric or oblong, 6-12 × ca. 3 mm, rather densely flowered, with peduncle enclosed in involucral bract sheath or slightly exserted. Female glumes rusty colored, obovate or ovate, margins white membranous, green costa with distinct midrib excurrent into a scabrid mucro, apex acute. Utricles pale green, longer than or nearly equaling glume, obovate or broadly obovate, obtusely trigonous, 2-2.7 mm, sparsely puberulent, faintly few veined, base attenuate into a short stipe, apex abruptly contracted into a conic beak, beak slightly recurved, emarginate abaxially and truncate adaxially at orifice. Nutlet tightly enveloped, broadly obovate, obtusely trigonous, 1.2-1.5 mm, base shortly stipitate, apex discoid-annulate; stigmas 3. Fl. and fr. Jul.