Dense tufts to 1 m high, upper part of leaves and stems drooping. Female spikes c. 5, distant, usually pendulous on long filiform peduncles, ± 4 cm × 3-4 mm. Glumes very light brown. Utricles almost black when mature. Stigmas 3.

Dense yellow-green tufts, upper part of lvs and culms drooping. Culms 10–80 cm. × c. 1 mm., trigonous, smooth; basal sheaths red-brown, red-purple to black. Lvs < or = culms, (1.5)–2.5–6.5 mm. wide, linear, double-folded, hard. Infl. of 5–10 distant spikes 1–4–(5) cm. long, nodding on long filiform peduncles; terminal 1–4 spikes male, slender, us. approximate; remaining spikes female with a few male fls above or below, 3–4 mm. diam., us. almost black, lowermost spikes often compound; subtending bracts lfy, > infl. Glumes (excluding awn) ± = or < utricles, ovate, lanceolate, entire or rarely emarginate, light or dark brown, membr., midrib produced to a scabrid awn of varying length. Utricles 2–3 mm. long, slightly > 1mm. diam., plano-convex, unequally biconvex or subtrigonous, fusiform or ovoid, turgid, dark red-brown to almost black, occ. light brown, pale yellow towards the base, surface smooth, occ. faintly nerved at the base, shining; scarcely narrowed above to a bidentate beak < 0.5 mm. long, margins smooth or occ. scabrid, orifice us. scabrid; rarely contracted to a stipe c. 0.2 mm. long. Stigmas 3. Nut c. 1 mm. long, trigonous, obovoid, cream, surface minutely but deeply pitted giving angles of nut a serrate appearance.