Flora of North America species comparison

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Brotherella recurvans

Brotherella roellii

recurved brotherella moss, satin moss

roell's brotherella moss
Habit Plants medium-sized, in dense mats, pale green to yellow-green. Plants small, reclining, pale 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.

0.5–5 cm, to 1 mm wide across main leafy shoot, somewhat complanate-foliate, little or irregularly branched, branches sometimes flagelliform;

pseudoparaphyllia narrowly lanceolate.
Leaves

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

margins toothed in acumen;

alar cells 3 or 4, yellowish.

slightly secund to falcate, occasionally almost erect, ovate-lanceolate, tapering to apex, 0.8–1.2 cm;

margins toothed in acumen;

alar cells 2 or 3, red-brown.
Seta

light brown, 1–1.5 cm.

red-brown, 0.5–1 cm.
Sexual condition

dioicous.

autoicous.
Capsule

inclined, oblong-cylindric, somewhat asymmetric;

operculum short-rostrate.

suberect, cylindric, symmetric to somewhat asymmetric;

operculum rostrate.

Brotherella recurvans

Brotherella roellii
Phenology Capsules mature late fall. Capsules mature winter.
Habitat Logs, humus, tree trunks, rock, forests Tree trunks and bases, organic soil, forest margins
Elevation low to high elevations 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
[WildflowerSearch map]
from FNA
WA; BC
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.)

In the genus, plants of Brotherella roellii are those of smallest stature in North America. It is the only autoicous species, thus sporophytes are fairly common. When sterile, however, B. roellii commonly produces readily deciduous flagelliferous shoots or branches. The species appears to be extinct in Washington; no specimens have been collected there for more than 70 years. In British Columbia, most collections have been made in secondary forests or on forest edges.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 28, p. 578. FNA vol. 28, p. 578.
Parent taxa Sematophyllaceae > Brotherella Sematophyllaceae > Brotherella
Sibling taxa
B. canadensis, B. henonii, B. roellii
B. canadensis, B. henonii, B. recurvans
Synonyms Leskea recurvans, B. delicatula, Rhynchostegium delicatulum Rhaphidostegium roellii
Name authority (Michaux) M. Fleischer: Nova Guinea 12: 120. (1914) (Renauld & Cardot) M. Fleischer: Musc. Buitenzorg 4: 1245. (1923)
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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