Campylopus introflexus
Campylopus angustiretis
heath star moss
campylopus moss
4–6 mm, erect-patent when wet, appressed when dry, lanceolate, straight, with entire margins;
alar cells absent or formed by thin-walled, hyaline to reddish, inflated cells;
basal laminal cells hyaline, rectangular, thin-walled, extending higher at margins and forming a V-shaped area;
distal laminal cells incrassate, shortly rectangular to oblique, chlorophyllose;
costa filling 1/2–3/4 of leaf width, excurrent in a hyaline hair tip, which is conspicuously 90° reflexed, in transverse section showing adaxial hyalocysts and abaxial stereids, shortly lamellose at back with ribs 1–2 cells high.
6 mm, lanceolate, keeled, long-decurrent, gradually narrowed into a fine channelled, concolorous, straight tip that is denticulate at the outermost apex;
alar cells large, inflated and auriculate, hyaline;
basal laminal cells rectangular, moderately thick-walled, narrower and thin-walled in several marginal rows;
distal laminal cells elongate, 6–10:1, not sharply delimited from the basal laminal cells;
costa relatively narrow, filling 1/4–1/3 of leaf width, excurrent, in transverse section with a adaxial band of hyalocysts that are slightly smaller than the median deuters, abaxially with groups of stereids, smooth at back.
7–12 mm, yellowish brown to brownish in age, often several sporophytes from the same plant, curved or sinuose.
brown, 1.5 mm, slightly asymmetric and curved when empty.
ciliate at base.
12–14 µm.
asexual reproduction occasionally by deciduous stem tips.
asexual reproduction not known.
not known.
Campylopus introflexus
Campylopus angustiretis
Campylopus introflexus occurs in masses in sand dunes along the west coast of North America and throughout the Southern Hemisphere. The species was introduced in Great Britain in 1942, and since the beginning of the 1970s has been aggressively spreading through Europe. It now ranges from Iceland to Spain and from Ireland to Poland. The first record in North America dates from August, 1975, and was made on a gravel roof of a building of Humboldt University, Arcata, California. The species is undoubtedly introduced in North America and is spreading here as rapidly as in Europe. The name C. introflexus was used previously for C. pilifer, thus all old references for C. introflexus in North America have to be referred to that species. Also, specimens of C. surinamensis and C. oerstedianus from North America were named as C. introflexus. Campylopus introflexus is easily recognized by the reflexed hair points. Female plants have terminal perichaetial buds. Problems may rarely arise with forms from shaded habitats, in which the hairpoints are absent or so short that they are not reflexed.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Campylopus angustiretis differs from all other species of the genus by its elongate distal laminal cells. Thus it is not certain if it actually belongs to this genus. Because of the lack of sporophytes a decision cannot be made. It has been treated as a variety of the sympatric C. surinamensis and superficially resembles certain expressions of that species (described as C. donnellii). It differs, however, by a narrower costa, the awn not coarsely serrate, the transverse section of the costa showing larger hyalocysts, and distinctly keeled leaves.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
BC
CalFlora
Flora NW
PNW Herbaria
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
