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BFNA Title: Physcomitrella |
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Edit Level R Brum + Funariaceae - Physcomitrella Physcomitrella Bruch
& Schimper, Bryologia Europaea 1: 13 (fasc. 42. Mon. 1.). 1849 * [Latin -ella, diminutive, resembling a small Physcomitrium] Bernard
Goffinet Plants
small, to 0.5 mm, green, scattered to gregarious. Stems
short, 3--3.5 mm, simple or branched, rhizoids light brown, smooth. Leaves somewhat crisped when dry,
erect-spreading when moist, 2--2.5 × 0.6--1 mm, margin serrulate distally,
entire proximally; costa single; cells thin-walled, smooth, proximal cells
rectangular, distal cells short-rectangular to rhombic with narrow ends. Sexual condition paroicous. Seta erect, to 0.2 mm. Capsule erect, immersed, symmetric,
brown, globose and apiculate, apiculus to 0.2 mm, smooth, wrinkled upon aging,
to 0.8 mm, annulus none; peristome lacking; exothecial cells very
thin-walled, translucent at maturity, irregular in shape; stomata with single
guard cell, restricted to base of capsule, superficial. Operculum not differentiated, dehiscence irregular. Calyptra short, to 0.2 mm, covering
apiculus of capsule only, smooth. Spores
spherical to slightly elliptical, densely papillose to slightly
spinulose, light brown. Species 2 (2 in the flora): North America, c and n
Europe, Asia ( Physcomitrella
is distinguished from other species of Funariaceae by the immersed capsule
with irregular dehiscence, and the thin-walled, translucent exothecial cells.
The generic name implies a resemblance to Physcomitrium,
which is named, however, for its large calyptra, unlike that of Physcomitrella. selected reference Crum, H. A. and L. E. Anderson. 1955.
Bryologist 58: 1--5. Crum, H.
A. and L. E. Anderson. 1981. Mosses of 1. Costa extending to at most 2/3 the length of the
leaf………….1. Physcomitrella readeri 1. Costa extending to leaf apex …………………………………..2. Physcomitrella patens 1.
Physcomitrella readeri (J. K. A. Müller) I.G. Stone &
G.A.M. Scott, J. Bryol. 7: 604. 1973 [1974] Ephemerella
readeri J. K. A. Müller, Hedwigia 41: 120. 1902; Physcomitrella californica H.A. Crum
& L.E. Anderson; P. patens subsp. californica (H.A. Crum & L.E.
Anderson) B.C. Tan; P. patens subsp. readeri (J. K. A. Müller) B.C. Tan Plants
to 4.5 mm. Stems to 3 mm, branching near base. Leaves to 2 × 0.6 mm, ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, margins plane,
serrulate in distal 1/3; costa extending 1/2--2/3 of the leaf length,
occasionally slightly forked at apex; proximal cells 75--180 × 35--60 µm,
distal cells 45--115 × 15--50 µm, marginal cells not differentiated. Calyptra entire at base, often with a
single slit extending toward apex. Spores
27--42 µm. Capsules mature Jan--Apr. Mineral soil (mudflats) in lake
banks; low elevations; Calif.; Asia (China, Japan); Pacific Islands (New
Zealand); Australia. This species is distinguished from the sympatric Physcomitrium patens mainly by its
shorter costa. The size of the rostrum has also been given taxonomic
significance, but capsules of P. patens
may also bear an apiculum reaching 0.2 mm. Similarly, the forked costa has
been considered diagnostic of P.
readeri, but this feature is not constant. The status of P. readeri has been repeatedly
debated, but the geographic restriction of plants with short costae to a
circum-Pacific range may justify taxonomic recognition. Physcomitrella readeri grows with P. patens in two localities in 2.
Physcomitrella patens (Hedwig) Bruch & Schimper, Bryologia
Europaea 1: 13. (fasc. 42. Mon 1) 1849 Phascum
patens Hedwig, Sp. Musc. Frond. 20. 1801; Aphanorrhegma patens (Hedwig) Lindberg Plants
to 5 mm. Stems to 3.5 mm. Leaves to 2.5 × 1 mm, lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate to obovate,
acuminate, not or weakly concave, margin of lanceolate leaves somewhat
reflexed when dry, serrulate in distal 1/3, rarely below leaf median; costa
ending near apex; proximal cells 65--135 × 15--45 µm, distal cells 36--66 ×
12--27 µm; marginal cells sometimes longer that medial laminal cells,
reaching 150 µm. Calyptra entire
at base. Spores 21--33 µm. Capsules mature Aug -- Jan. Early pioneer on wet mineral
soil, river banks, fields; low elevations; B.C., Ont., Que.; Calif., Ill., Ind., La., Md., Mich., Minn.,
Mo., N.Y., Ohio, Oreg., Pa., Va; c and n Europe; Asia (w Siberia). Physcomitrella
patens is fairly variable in leaf shape and stature. The species
is similar to Aphanorrhegma, with
which it is broadly sympatric but far less common. Physcomitrella patens differs
from A. serratum by the thin-walled
exothecial cells and the unlobed calyptra. |
