Tightly tufted perennial, 12-40 cm. Rhizome short. Stem 0.5-1.8 mm, obtusely trigonous to terete, grooved, smooth. Leaves fine, narrower than stem, at first equalling (or even longer than) stem, finally much shorter; sheaths 30-60 mm, dark greyish brown, glossy when young, soon disintegrating into fibres or fibrous net, mouth margin almost straight; ligule to 0.5 mm, hardly arched; blades 0.5-0.7 mm wide, channelled, margins frequently incurved, scabrous. Inflorescence a lax spike, 15-70 x 2-4 mm, greenish-brown, lower part female, distal male. Female glumes 4.2-5.7 x 1.5-2 mm, lowest sometimes up to 20 mm, obtuse or acute, with scabrous arista up to 2.5 mm, greenish to light brown, basal part colourless, margins scarious; male glumes up to 7 mm, obtuse. Utricles 5.3-6.3 x 0.7-0.8 mm, fusiform, planoconvex, slightly obovoid, greenish, nerves scabrous; beak not clearly differentiated, green or brownish, ostiole with scarious margins, truncate or oblique. Rachilla mostly sterile, or with single staminate flower. Nut 4-4.3 x 0.8 mm, incl. style base to 0.8 mm and stipe to 0.4 mm, fusiform, trigonous, greyish brown with paler nerves, finely reticulate with papilla in each areole.