Sphagnum capillifolium |
Sphagnum angermanicum |
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common red peat-moss, small red peat moss, sphagnum |
angerman's sphagnum |
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Habit | Plants small to moderate-sized, compact to fairly slender, normally stiff and erect; capitulum typically hemispherical; in exposed sites red, mottled red and green, in shaded sites green forms are common; without metallic lustre when dry. | Plants moderate-sized, soft and lax, capitulum large with head branches that are typically distinctively blunt and transversely flattened; usually pale green with a weak purplish coloration evident late in the growing season, often with a weak metallic luster when dry. |
Stem(s) | green to red; superficial cortical cells aporose Stem leaves lingulate-triangular, 1.2–1.6(–1.8) mm, apex ± involute; border entire and broadened to about 0.25 the width of the base; hyaline cells S-shaped, 0–1-septate, usually fibrillose in distal portion of leaf. |
leaves lingulate to spatulate, widest above middle (1.5 times as wide as the base), 1.5–2.5 mm, apex obtuse and dentate to lacerate; border entire and little broadened at base, hyaline cells elongated-rhomboid, normally 1-septate, strongly fibrillose in distal portion, convex surface with numerous large pores and resorption gaps in apical angles, concave surface with large resorption gaps below and large resorption pores above. |
Branches | not 5-ranked, terete. |
unranked, terete. |
Branch leaves | ovate-lanceolate, 1–1.4 mm, imbricate to moderately spreading, concave, straight, strongly involute near apex; hyaline cells on convex surface with elliptic pores along commissures, concave surface with large round pores away from commissures in proximal portions of leaf. |
ovate, 1.3–2.5 mm, straight, not concave; apex weakly involute, broadly truncate with 6–10 conspicuous teeth; border entire; hyaline cells on convex surface with elliptic pores (4–8 per cell) along the commissures, concave surface with large round pores in distal half and proximal portion of cells. |
Sexual condition | dioicous. |
dioicous. |
Spores | 20–28 µm; finely papillose on both surfaces, with distinct raised Y-shaped sculpture on distal surface; proximal laesura 0.5 spore radius or more. |
26–34 µm; finely granulose-roughened. |
Branch | fascicles with 2 spreading and 1–2 pendent branches. |
fascicles with 2 spreading and 1–2 pendent branches. |
Sphagnum capillifolium |
Sphagnum angermanicum |
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Phenology | Capsules mature mid summer. | |
Habitat | Ombrotrophic, broad range of acidic environments, also forming dense mats and carpets over wet, acidic rocks and peat, especially at higher elevations, less frequent in forested fen vegetation | Minerotrophic, hydrophytic |
Elevation | low to high elevations | low to moderate elevations |
Distribution |
AK; CA; CT; ID; IL; IN; KY; MA; ME; MI; MN; MT; OH; OR; PA; RI; SD; TN; VA; VT; WA; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; NT; NU; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT; Greenland; Europe
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MA; ME; NH; NJ; NY; NB; NF; NS; QC; Europe |
Discussion | Sporophytes are fairly common in Sphagnum capillifolium. This species is most common and abundant in ombrotrophic heath vegetation associated with S. angustifolium, S. fallax, S. fuscum, S. magellanicum, S. rubellum, Polytrichum commune, and P. juniperinum. It can be distinguished from most other red species of sect. Acutifolia with which it co-occurs by its lack of 5-ranking in the branches. Sphagnum subtile is a forest and non-hummock forming species that has a distinctly shorter and more triangular-lingulate stem leaf. The stem leaf border on S. subtile is also more strongly bordered. Sphagnum tenerum, which geographically overlaps S. capillifolium only very minimally, has much more turgid branches and a generally more robust look. The stem leaf of S. tenerum is triangular-lingulate as compared to the lingulate- triangular stem leaf of S. capillifolium. See also discussion under 84. S. subnitens and 87. S. tenerum. The names Sphagnum acutifolium Schrader and S. nemoreum Scopoli (doubtful name) have also been used for this taxon. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Sporophytes of Sphagnum angermanicum are rare. This is a species associated with typically poor fen species such as S. flavicomans, S. bartlettianum, S. papillosum, S. pulchrum, and S. rubellum. It is usually easily recognized by its pale color and blunt, short and flattened capitulum branches, and also is limited to wetter microsites than most species of sect. Acutifolia and rarely forms hummocks. Spore characters are taken from H. A. Crum (1984). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 27, p. 91. | FNA vol. 27, p. 89. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | S. palustre var. capillifolium, S. capillaceum, S. capillifolium var. viride, S. margaritae | S. nemoreum var. angermanicum |
Name authority | (Ehrhart) Hedwig: Fund. Hist. Nat. Musc. Frond. 2: 86. (1782) | Melin: Svensk Bot. Tidskr. 13: 21. (1919) |
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