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BFNA Title: Bryhnia |
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Edit Level R
new Aug. 3, 2010 BRACHYTHECIACEAE
-- Bryhnia
Michael S. Ignatov Plants small to robust, green, or yellowish to
brownish green. Stems prostrate to
ascending or arching, with central strand, unevenly foliate, alternating
cochleariform parts with moderately loose foliage or moderately dense with
very loose, irregularly to regularly pinnately branching; branches straight,
moderately densely terete- to complanate-foliate; axillary hairs 3--4-celled.
Stem leaves imbricate-appressed,
erect, patent, or rigidly spreading, ovate or ovate- triangular and broadly
acute to ovate-lanceolate and then tapered to a long acumen, decurrent;
margins serrate distally, serrulate proximally; costa ending in distal
portion of leaf, smooth or ending in an abaxial spine; basal cells
indistinctly differentiated, thick-walled; alar cells (or sometimes only
sub-alar cells) isodiametric, rather large and thin-walled, indistinct or
distinct; laminal cells elongate-flexuose, moderately to strongly
thick-walled, distal cell ends prorate to papillose on abaxial surface. Branch leaves narrower and smaller
than stem leaves, acute to acuminate (more acute than stem leaves), with margins
and abaxial surface of costa more strongly serrate and abaxial lamina more
toothed. Sexual condition
dioicous; perichaetial leaves with reflexed acumens. Seta brownish orange to red brown, rough. Capsule brownish orange to red brown, inclined to horizontal;
annulus separating by fragments; operculum high-conic, tapered to a broad
beak; peristome xerocastique, perfect. Spores
13--18 \um. Calyptra naked. Species ca.
5--10 (3 in the flora): North America, South America, The
circumscription of Bryhnia needs a
re-evaluation with DNA markers since morphology seems to be misleading. In 1. Plants
small, stems to 2 cm; stem leaves narrowly ovate to lanceolate, 0.6--1.1 x
0.25--0.5 mm . . . 1. Bryhnia
graminicolor 1. Plants
medium-sized to robust, stems usually much longer than 2 cm; stem leaves
broadly ovate-triangular to ovate, 0.7--1.5 x 0.7--1.2 mm. 2.
Stem leaves ovate-triangular to ovate, 1--1.6 mm, usually longer than broad,
acute, rarely cucullate, more or less imbricate but not julaceous (except
rarely along some portions of the stem); alar cells usually gradually
differentiated; eastern North America . . . 2. Bryhnia novae-angliae 2.
Stem leaves broadly ovate-triangular, 0.7--1.2 mm, often shorter than broad,
rounded or broadly acute, often truncate and short-apiculate, often
cucullate, julaceous; alar cells abruptly differentiated; 1. Bryhnia graminicolor (Bridel) Grout, Bull. Torrey Bot. Cl.
25: 231. 1898 Hypnum graminicolor Bridel, Musc. Recent. Suppl. 2: 251.
1812 Plants small, in moderately dense, soft tufts,
light green or brownish yellow-green. Stems
to 2 cm, prostrate to ascending, straight or flexuose, terete foliate,
rather regularly pinnately branched; branches to 5 mm, straight,
terete-foliate. Stem leaves rigidly
spreading, narrowly ovate to lanceolate, broadest at 1/5--1/6\x leaf length,
not or slightly plicate, 0.6--1.1 x 0.25--0.5 mm, rounded to base,
short-decurrent; margins plane or partially recurved, usually only below the
broadest point of the leaf, serrulate to serrate almost to base; gradually
acuminate; costa moderately weak, reaching 0.6--0.8\x leaf length, ending in
an abaxial spine; basal cells shorter in ca. 2 rows, little differentiated
from cells above, 7--8 \um wide, thick-walled; alar cells subquadrate to
short rectangular, 10--20 x 7--9 \um, forming a small group of about 4 x 4
cells, moderately thick-walled, indistinctly differentiated, sometimes
obscured by a recurved portion of the leaf margin; laminal cells elongate,
25--45 x 5--6 \um, strongly papillose at distal corners, the rough surface of
leaves readily observed under stereo-microscope and 10\x hand lens. Branch leaves smaller and narrower,
more strongly serrulate. Seta 7--15
mm. Capsule inclined, cylindric,
not or slightly curved, about 1.6 mm, operculum high-conic and broadly
rostrate. Spores 13--15 \um. Rock faces,
crevices, and ledges, soil, often steep banks along roads and creeks, rarely
wood, moist shaded to rather open habitats; 0--900(--2040) m; Nfld. and
Labr., Ont., Que.; Ala., Ark., Conn., Del., D.C., Fla., Ga., Ill., Ind.,
Iowa, Kans., Ky., Maine, Md., Mass., Mich., Minn., Mo., Nebr., N.J., N.Y.,
N.C., Ohio, Okla., Pa., R.I., S.C., Tenn., Vt., Utah, Va., W.Va., Wis. Bryhnia graminicolor usually occurs at low elevations,
reaching to 900 m in the 2. Bryhnia novae-angliae (Sullivant & Lesquereaux) Grout,
Bull. Torrey Bot. Cl. 25: 229. 1898 Hypnum novae-angliae Sullivant & Lesquereaux, Musci
Hepaticae Plants medium-sized, in moderately loose to
dense tufts, light to dark green, or yellowish to brownish green. Stems to 10 cm, prostrate to arching,
slightly curved or flexuose, terete to sub-complanate foliate, with rather
numerous sub-dendroid sympodial branches and with occasional rather regular
pinnate branching; branches to 7 mm, straight to slightly curved,
sub-complanate to complanate-foliate. Stem
leaves closely to loosely imbricate, rarely julaceous along some portions
of the stem, erect, or patent and then twisted to contorted, ovate-triangular
to ovate, broadest at 1/7\x leaf length or more proximally, not or weakly
plicate, 1--1.5 x 0.7--1.1 mm, longer than broad, rounded to base, decurrent;
margins plane or recurved proximally, serrulate or serrate almost to base;
apex acute or gradually to abruptly short-acuminate, rarely cucullate; costa
strong, reaching 0.6--0.8\x leaf length, ending in an abaxial spine; basal
cells somewhat shorter than cells above, 10--13 \um wide, thick-walled; alar
cells short-rectangular, enlarged, to 30 x 12--16 \um, moderately
thick-walled, forming a rather conspicuous, although relatively small
pellucid group not reaching the leaf margin, gradually differentiated;
laminal cells elongate, rhombic-elongate distally, often distinctly flexuose,
20--40 x 4---6 \um, variable among different leaves on the same plant,
ranging from 3--8:1, usually strongly prorate to prorate-papillose on abaxial
surface. Branch leaves smaller and
rather uniform in size, ovate-lanceolate, often with short, twisted acumens,
more strongly serrate, costa with stronger spine and cells more strongly
prorate-papillose. Seta 10--20 mm.
Capsule inclined to horizontal,
slightly curved, 1.5--2 mm; operculum high-conic to shortly and broadly
rostrate. Spores 14--18 \um. Soil,
sometimes rocks, rotten logs, wet shady places, forest, along small brooks,
wet places on slopes; 0--1900 m; N.B., Nfld. and Labr. (Nfld., Labr.), N.S.,
Ont., P.E.I., Que.; Ala., Ark., Conn., Del., Ga., Ill., Ind., Maine, Md.,
Mass., Mich., Minn., Mo., N.H., N.J., N.Y., N.C., Ohio, Pa., R.I., Tenn.,
Vt., Va., W.Va., Wis.; Europe; e Asia. Bryhnia novae-angliae is a common plant in eastern North
America, reaching south into 3. Bryhnia hultenii E. B. Bartram in A. J. Grout, Moss Fl.
No. Amer. 3: 264. 1934 Plants medium-sized, in moderately loose to
dense tufts, light green or yellowish to brownish green. Stems 2.5--7 cm, prostrate to dendroid-arching, terete-foliate,
with rather numerous sub-dendroid sympodial branches, occasionally with
rather regular pinnate branching; branches to 6 mm, straight to slightly
curved, terete- to complanate-foliate. Stem
leaves julaceous, broadly ovate-triangular, broadest at ca. 1/7 of leaf
length or below, strongly concave, slightly plicate, 0.7--1.2 x 0.8--1.2 mm,
often shorter than 1 mm and shorter than broad; apices broadly acute to
rounded-truncate and short-apiculate, often cucullate, rounded to base,
broadly and long-decurrent; margins plane or partially recurved, serrulate to
near base; costa weak, reaching 0.4--0.7\x the leaf length, lacking an
abaxial spine; basal cells shorter and wider
in 2--3 rows, indistinctly delimited from cells above, to 15 \um wide,
thick-walled; alar cells subquadrate to short-rectangular, usually enlarged,
up to 45 x 25 \um, forming a pellucid group of 5--7 x 8--14 cells, moderately
thin-walled, reaching 1/2--4/5\x distance to the costa, distinctly delimited;
laminal cells elongate to rhombic, strongly flexuose, 15--40 x 6--12 \um,
thick-walled, slightly prorate to prorate-papillose on abaxial surface. Branch leaves smaller, rounded-ovate,
about 0.6 x 0.5 mm, with smaller cells and almost undifferentiated basal
cells. Sexual condition dioicous. [Capsule inclined to horizontal,
slightly curved, ca. 1.5 mm; operculum conic.] Soil and rocks
at cliff bases, under dense Alnus
canopy, bottom of gullies, sides of brooks, moderate to strong shade, wet to
mesic places; 0--300 m; B.C.; Alaska; ne Asia. The
description of the capsules of Bryhnia
hultenii is from Asian collections, as no sporophytes have been found in OTHER
LITERATURE Noguchi, A.
1991. Illustrated moss flora of Robinson, H.
1962 [1963]. Generic revisions of North American Brachytheciaceae. Bryologist
65: 73--146. Takaki, N.
1956. |
