Sphagnum balticum |
Sphagnum junghuhnianum |
|
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Baltic peat-moss, Baltic sphagnum |
junghuhn's sphagnum |
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Habit | Plants small to moderate-sized, soft and ± weak-stemmed; brownish green, yellow-green, yellowish to golden brown, capitulum typically flat and 5-radiate. | Plants moderate-sized, soft, loosely tufted, slender, capitulum flat-topped to rounded; pale, dirty green, yellowish to brownish; without metallic lustre when dry. |
Stem(s) | leaves 0.8–1.1 mm, triangular-lingulate to lingulate, concave, spreading, apex broadly obtuse, hyaline cells fibrillose in apical region. |
leaves triangular-lingulate, 1.2–1.6 mm, broadly apex acute to narrowly truncate and toothed, border narrow or indistinct at base (less than 0.25 the width); hyaline cells rhomboid, mostly 0–1-septate; convex surface with membrane pleats, concave surface with 1–3 rounded membrane gaps occupying most of cell. |
Branches | slender and tapering, often 5-ranked and decurved, leaves somewhat elongated at distal end. |
somewhat 5-ranked. |
Branch leaves | ovate-lanceolate, 1–1.7 mm, straight, slightly undulate and spreading; margin entire, hyaline cells on convex surface with 1–5 pores in cell ends and free near apex, on concave surface with round wall thinnings in cell ends and angles; chlorophyllous cells triangular in transverse section and well-enclosed on concave surface. |
ovate-lanceolate, 1.3–2 mm, strongly concave, apex strongly involute; margins entire to somewhat toothed near apex, hyaline cells on convex surface with numerous ringed elliptic pores (6–10) along commissures, concave surface mostly aporose except near margins; Sexual condition dioicous or monoicous. |
Sexual condition | dioicous. |
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Spores | 25–33 µm; smooth to finely papillose on both surfaces; proximal laesura approximately 0.5 spore radius. |
21–23 µm; minutely papillose. |
Branch | fascicles with 2 spreading and mostly 1 pendent branch.; branch stem green, cortex enlarged with conspicuous retort cells. |
fascicles with 2 spreading and 1–2 pendent branches. |
Sphagnum balticum |
Sphagnum junghuhnianum |
|
Habitat | Abundant in hollows and floating mats in raised bogs and poor fens | Shady, seepy cliffs |
Elevation | low to high elevations | low elevations |
Distribution |
AK; CO; AB; BC; MB; NT; NU; ON; QC; YT; Greenland; Eurasia |
BC; e Asia |
Discussion | Unlike Sphagnum angustifolium and S. annulatum, S. balticum has stem leaves exerted at right angles to the stem. It also has fewer and weaker hanging branches than does S. angustifolium, which make the stem itself often visible and the stem leaves easier to see. Sphagnum balticum also lacks the paired pendent branch buds between the capitulum rays as seen in S. angustifolium. In Sphagnum kenaiense there are sometimes spreading stem leaves but this species has 2 hanging branches per fascicle. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Sphagnum junghuhnianum in the flora area is known only from the Queen Charlotte Islands. Sporophytes of Sphagnum junghuhnianum were not seen. Three other large, brown species of sect. Acutifolia have stem leaves without fimbriate to lacerate apices, S. subnitens (forms without red color), S. subfulvum, and S. flavicomans. Sphagnum flavicomans has a more pointed stem leaf and a darker brown color as well as a strongly different ecology and range. Both S. subnitens and S. subfulvum have a glossy sheen when dry that is lacking in S. junghuhnianum. Sexual condition and spore characters were taken from H. A. Crum (1984). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 27, p. 65. | FNA vol. 27, p. 95. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | S. recurvum subsp. balticum | S. junghuhnianum subsp. pseudomolle, S. pseudomolle |
Name authority | (Russow) C. E. O. Jensen: in Botaniske Forening København, Festskrift, 100. (1890) | Dozy & Molkenboer: Verh. Kon. Akad. Wetensch., Afd. Natuurk. 2: 8. (1854) |
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