Flora of North America species comparison

(0.5–)1–4 cm tall, rather wiry, unbranched, comose at the tips, whitish tomentose only near the base.

(2–)5–10(–70) cm, stiffly erect to decumbent, mostly simple or rarely forked, bracteate proximally, densely to rather distantly leafy.

(2–)3–4 mm, erect, straight and slightly incurved when dry, erect-spreading when moist;

sheath ovate, ± contracted to the blade;

blade linear-lanceolate, turgid, with sharply infolded margins, the leaf apex abruptly contracted to the base of the awn;

marginal lamina 5–8 cells wide, 1-stratose, membranous, entire to finely serrulate toward the apex, enclosing the lamellae and overlapping in distal half or more;

costa typically smooth abaxially, long-excurrent as a spinulose-toothed, hyaline awn;

lamellae in profile crenulate-dentate to serrulate, with crenulations directed towards the leaf apex, (4–)6–8 cells high, the marginal cells in section conic to distinctly pyriform, terminating in a distinct knob, the marginal cells of the lateral lamellae ovoid, thinner-walled;

sheath cells 60–80 × 10–15 µm, elongate-rectangular (4–6:1);

cells of marginal lamina transversely elongated, ± irregular and sinuous, smaller toward the margins and obliquely oriented, especially approaching the apex, thick-walled.

6–8(–12) mm, erect or erect-spreading when dry, flexuose, with distinctly recurved tips, spreading to broadly recurved when moist, or the blade sharply squarrose-reflexed from the base;

sheath oblong to elliptic, involute-tubular and clasping the stem, often golden yellow and highly nitid, abruptly contracted to the narrowly lanceolate blade;

marginal lamina plane or erect, narrow, 2–3(–7) cells wide, toothed from the base of blade to the apex, the teeth unicellular, embedded in the margin;

costa toothed abaxially near the apex, excurrent, ending in short, rough awn;

lamellae crenulate in profile, 5–9 cells high, the margin distinctly grooved as seen from above, with 2 rows of paired, projecting knobs, the marginal cells in section narrow or more typically enlarged and wider than those beneath, retuse to deeply notched (rarely divided by a vertical partition), ± thick-walled and brownish, smooth;

sheath cells 60–90 × 10–13 µm, elongate-rectangular to linear (as much as 20:1), narrower toward the margins;

cells of the marginal lamina 10–15 µm wide, subquadrate.

1–3 cm, stout, flexuose, reddish brown.

5–9 cm, stout, yellowish to reddish brown.

dioicous;

perigonia intense wine-red;

perichaetial leaves a little longer than foliage leaves, with hyaline lamina and longer awns.

dioicous;

perichaetial leaves with a long, scarious-margined sheath and blade greatly reduced, gradually narrowed to a finely acuminate tip, the margins toothed, denticulate to subentire, the costa short- to long-excurrent, roughened to almost smooth.

2.5–3.5 mm, short to almost cubic (1.5–2:1), inclined, becoming horizontal when mature;

peristome rather short, 110–180(–200) µm, divided to 0.6, the teeth about 64, obtuse.

3–6 mm, short-rectangular to cubic, brown to dark reddish brown, glaucous when fresh, sharply 4-alate, inclined to horizontal;

peristome 250 µm, divided to 0.6, the teeth 64, pale.

dirty white to light brown, enclosing the capsule.

golden yellow to brownish, completely enveloping the capsule.

9–12 µm.

5–8(–12) µm.