Flora of North America species comparison

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Brotherella recurvans

recurved brotherella moss, satin moss
Habit Plants medium-sized, in dense mats, pale green to yellow-green.
Stems

2–6 cm, 1.5–2 mm wide across main leafy shoot, markedly complanate-foliate, subpinnate to irregularly branched, strongly falcate-secund toward substrate at stem and branch apices;

pseudoparaphyllia narrowly to lanceolate-filamentous.
Leaves

falcate-secund, ovate, tapering to apex, 1–1.5 mm;

margins toothed in acumen;

alar cells 3 or 4, yellowish.
Seta

light brown, 1–1.5 cm.
Sexual condition

dioicous.
Capsule

inclined, oblong-cylindric, somewhat asymmetric;

operculum short-rostrate.

Brotherella recurvans
Phenology Capsules mature late fall.
Habitat Logs, humus, tree trunks, rock, forests
Elevation low to high elevations
Distribution
from FNA
AL; CT; GA; IA; IL; IN; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; SC; TN; VA; VT; WI; WV; NB; NF; NS; ON; PE; QC
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Discussion

Brotherella recurvans resembles Pseudotaxiphyllum elegans (Hypnaceae) superficially, but is generally larger and has inflated alar cells and a toothed apiculus. Branches and main shoots of B. recurvans bear leaves of similar size and areolation, and branching tends to be irregular. The laminal cells are usually linear to sinuate-linear.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 28, p. 578.
Parent taxa Sematophyllaceae > Brotherella
Sibling taxa
B. canadensis, B. henonii, B. roellii
Synonyms Leskea recurvans, B. delicatula, Rhynchostegium delicatulum
Name authority (Michaux) M. Fleischer: Nova Guinea 12: 120. (1914)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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