Fissidens bryoides

   Plants light green to rather deep green, to 6 mm high, with up to 10 pairs of leaves. Leaves, when dry, laterally twisted; when moist, spreading from stem at about a 30 degree angle, to 2 mm long, 3–4: 1 oblong to oblong lingulate. Vaginant lamina to 5:1, extending about 1/2 of leaf, the two sides converging at an acute angle, homostichous. Dorsal lamina mostly tapered to extinction above the leaf base, not decurrent. Median cells of apical and dorsal laminae unistratose, smooth, to 12 µm wide, thin-walled, hexagonal to rhomboidal with angular lumens and no corner thickenings. Median cells of vaginant lamina somewhat more regularly arranged, mostly a little longer than wide, 1–2:1, to 12 µm wide. Basal juxtacostal cells somewhat larger and more elongate. Costa to 25 µm at base, percurrent to subpercurrent, sometimes merging with limbidium at apex and forming an apiculus. Margin plane and entire throughout. Limbidium variably present, extending to apex or ending several cells below apex, occasionally almost absent from dorsal lamina. up to 4 cells wide, without stereids, not at all decurrent. Stem with no central strand and with a few thin-walled inner cortical cells abruptly differentiated from 1–2 layers of smaller, rather thick-walled outer corticals; lateral cells of outer cortex poorly differentiated. Axillary hyaline nodules not present.

   Dioicous or autoicous. Perichaetia terminal with seta to 8 mm, red-brown, nearly straight above the geniculate base, smooth. Urn to 0.8 mm long, oblong and symmetrical, about 2: 1. Operculum conic, about 1/3 as long as urn. Calyptra cucullate, smooth. Peristome reddish-brown, to 250 5m long, minutely papillose proximally, spirally ridged distally. Exothecial cells in regular vertical rows, somewhat bulging on outer surface, mostly isodiametric with angular lumens, rather thin-walled, to 15 µm wide. Spores to 20 µm, finely papillose.

Vouchers: Lake Co.: Sweetwater Creek, Hidden Valley, Toren & Dearing 7075 (CAS) [determined by Pursell]; Placer Co.: Forest Hill, road to Colfax, MacFadden 16962 (MO) [determined by Pursell]; San Francisco Co.: Golden Gate Park, Hermann 17449 (CAS) [determined by Pursell]; Tuolumne Co.: Vernal Falls, Yosemite National Park, Ikenberry 1358a (MO) [determined by Pursell].

Literature: As Fissidens bryoides var. longifolius Shevock and Toren 2001.

Illustration References: Crum and Anderson 1981.

Elevation by latitude plot for Fissidens bryoides
   in California