Sphagnum cuspidatum |
Sphagnum austinii |
|
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feathery bog-moss, feathery peat-moss, tooth sphagnum |
Austin's peat-moss, Austin's sphagnum |
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Habit | Plants slender and weak-stemmed, moderate-sized, flaccid and plumose in aquatic forms to more compact in emergent forms, spreading branches often conspicuously falcate, giving capitulum a twisted appearance; green to yellow, often tinged with red, red-brown or brown in capitula. | Plants moderate-sized to large, usually quite compact; reddish brown and often yellow flecked with red-brown; in dense stands forming large and tall hummocks. |
Stem(s) | leaves triangular-ovate, more than 1.2 mm, usually appressed; apex acute to apiculate, hyaline cells rarely septate or porose, apical region often fibrillose. |
leaves 1.2–1.6 × 1 mm; rarely hemiisophyllous; hyaline cells nonseptate or more typically mostly septate, comb-lamellae present on interior wall. |
Branches | mostly unranked to weakly 5-ranked, often conspicuously falcate, leaves greatly elongated at distal end. |
clavate, tapering to short point, tightly imbricate at proximal end to somewhat spreading at distal end in less compact forms. |
Branch leaves | ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, 1.6–5 mm, falcate toward branch tips, when dry often undulate and recurved, rarely weakly serrulate along the margins in submerged forms, leaves from middle of spreading branches with length to width ratio less than or equal to 1:0.28; hyaline cells length to width ratio in apical convex surface region 8:1 or more, convex surface with 0–1 small round pores at apex, concave surface with faint round wall thinnings in cell apices and angles; chlorophyllous cells triangular to trapezoidal in transverse section, broadly exposed on the convex surface and exposed slightly on the concave surface. |
ovate-elliptical to elliptical, 1.5–2.1 × 0.8–1.4 mm; hyaline cells on convex surface with numerous moderate-sized round pores along the commissures, comb-lamellae present throughout most of leaf; chlorophyllous cells broadly triangular in transverse section and well-enclosed on the convex surface, end wall not thickened. |
Sexual condition | dioicous. |
dioicous. |
Capsule | with scattered pseudostomata. |
|
Spores | 29–38 µm; covered with large papillae on both surfaces, appearing pusticulate; proximal laesura less than 0.5 spore radius. |
23–28 µm; coarsely granulate on both surfaces; proximal laesura more than 0.50 spore radius. |
Branch | fascicles with 2 spreading and 2–3 pendent branches.; branch stems green, but often pinkish at the proximal ends, with cortex enlarged with conspicuous retort cells. |
fascicles with 2 spreading and 1 pendent branch.; branch stems with cortical cell comb-lamellae visible on interior wall, conspicuous funnel-like projection on interior end walls extending to next cell less than one half its length, pores in superficial wall restricted to leaf bases. |
Sphagnum cuspidatum |
Sphagnum austinii |
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Phenology | Capsules common, mature mid summer. | |
Habitat | Widespread forming wet carpets in ombrotrophic to weakly minerotrophic mires | Ombrotrophic mires and large hummocks in blanket mires |
Elevation | low to moderate elevations | low to moderate elevations |
Distribution |
AL; CT; DE; FL; GA; IL; IN; KS; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MS; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; TN; VA; VT; WI; WV; NB; NF; NS; ON; QC; Europe
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AK; MA; ME; NJ; VT; WA; BC; NB; NF; NS; Europe |
Discussion | Distinguishing Sphagnum cuspidatum from S. viride is sometimes difficult, as both occur over a similar geographic range and both grow in wet carpets. Sphagnum cuspidatum has narrower branch leaves and usually a distinct red tinge at the branch bases within the capitulum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Sphagnum austinii is usually easily recognized in the field by its strongly imbricate and clavate branches. It forms very dense and often tall hummocks with a distinct deep golden brown color. In contrast to the view stated by H. A. Crum (1997), this species has an ecology and distribution quite distinct from those of S. affine. Sphagnum affine is a minerotrophic species that does not even occur in the Pacific coast region, where S. austinii is quite prominent. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 27, p. 66. | FNA vol. 27, p. 50. |
Parent taxa | Sphagnaceae > Sphagnum > sect. Cuspidata | Sphagnaceae > Sphagnum > sect. Sphagnum |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | S. cuspidatum var. plumosum, S. faxonii, S. virginianum | S. cymbifolium subsp. austinii, S. cymbifolium var. austinii, S. imbricatum subsp. austinii |
Name authority | Hoffman: Deutschl. Fl. 2: 22. (1796) | Sullivant: in C. F. Austin, Musci Appalach., 2. 1870 (as austini), |
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