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Douglas selaginella, Douglas' spike-moss, Douglas' spikemoss clubmoss, lesser clubmoss

Habit Plants on rock or terrestrial, forming loose mats.
Stems

long-creeping, branched, branches 2–3-forked, flat, not articulate, glabrous.

Leaves

delicate and papery.

Strobili

paired, 0.6–1.1 cm;

sporophylls monomorphic, ovate-lanceolate, keeled, keel not dentate, base glabrous, margins green, entire or with a few scattered, short cilia, apex acute to acuminate.

Rhizophores

borne on underside of stems throughout stem length or restricted to proximal ± 2/3 of main stem or axillary throughout stem, 0.2–0.4 mm diam.

Lateral

leaves spreading or slightly ascending, distant, shiny green becoming shiny brown, with orange or red spot or entirely reddish, ovate to ovate-oblong or oblong, 1.5–3.2 X (1–)1.5–2.2 mm;

base auriculate, basiscopic auricle conspicuous, acroscopic auricle inconspicuous or base ± rounded;

margins green, ciliate toward auricles, otherwise entire;

apex rounded to obtuse or truncate.

Median

leaves ovate-oblong, (1.8–)2–2.2 × 1–1.3 mm;

base auriculate, outer auricle larger than inner one;

margins green, ciliate at auricles, otherwise entire;

apex abruptly cuspidate to bristled.

Selaginella douglasii

Habitat Rocky slopes, mossy rock, rock crevices, in partial shade, often along river banks
Elevation 100–800 m (300–2600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
ID; OR; WA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Selaginella douglasii, with no close relatives in the flora, is easy to identify by its shiny green leaves when young, turning shiny light brown when old, with an orange to red spot at the base, or totally reddish. Its closest relative is the Mexican S. delicatissima Linden ex A. Braun.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 2.
Parent taxa Selaginellaceae > Selaginella > subg. Stachygynandrum
Sibling taxa
S. acanthonota, S. apoda, S. arenicola, S. arizonica, S. asprella, S. bigelovii, S. braunii, S. cinerascens, S. densa, S. eatonii, S. eclipes, S. eremophila, S. hansenii, S. kraussiana, S. lepidophylla, S. leucobryoides, S. ludoviciana, S. mutica, S. oregana, S. peruviana, S. pilifera, S. rupestris, S. rupincola, S. scopulorum, S. selaginoides, S. sibirica, S. standleyi, S. tortipila, S. uncinata, S. underwoodii, S. utahensis, S. viridissima, S. wallacei, S. watsonii, S. weatherbiana, S. willdenowii, S. wrightii, S. ×neomexicana
Synonyms Lycopodium douglasii
Name authority (Hooker & Greville) Spring: Bull. Acad. Roy. Sci. Bruxelles 10: 138. (1843)
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