Sphagnum cuspidatum |
Sphagnum subsecundum |
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feathery bog-moss, feathery peat-moss, tooth sphagnum |
cow-horn peat-moss, 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 small, slender, often wiry; green, yellow-brown or golden brown; capitulum small with terminal bud absent. |
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 triangular-lingulate, 0.8 mm or less; apex entire or weakly denticulate, hyaline cells sometimes septate, efibrillose and aporose except near apex. |
Branches | mostly unranked to weakly 5-ranked, often conspicuously falcate, leaves greatly elongated at distal end. |
often short and blunt. |
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. |
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Sexual condition | dioicous. |
dioicous. |
Capsule | exserted, with few pseudostomata. |
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Spores | 29–38 µm; covered with large papillae on both surfaces, appearing pusticulate; proximal laesura less than 0.5 spore radius. |
30–35 µm; finely papillose on both surfaces, distinct bifurcated Y-mark sculpture on distal surface; proximal laesurae more than 0.5 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 2–3 spreading and 2–3 pendent branches Branch leaves broadly ovate, subsecund, hyaline cells on convex surface with very numerous small pores (18–40 per cell) in a continuous row along the commissures, concave surface usually aporose. |
Sphagnum cuspidatum |
Sphagnum subsecundum |
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Habitat | Widespread forming wet carpets in ombrotrophic to weakly minerotrophic mires | Minerotrophic, near the edges of open, poor fens, less commonly found in open medium fens |
Elevation | low to moderate elevations | low to high 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; CA; CO; CT; ID; IL; IN; MA; ME; MI; MN; MT; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; VT; WA; WI; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; NT; ON; QC; YT; Greenland; Eurasia
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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.) |
Sporophytes are rare in Sphagnum subsecundum. This species is often associated with S. angustifolium, S. centrale, S. fimbriatum, S. flexuosum, S. palustre, and S. teres. The most widespread and common species of sect. Subsecunda, it exhibits considerable phenotypic plasticity in size. However, the stem leaves are always quite small in comparison to those of similar species. See also discussions under 52. S. contortum and 55. S. inexspectatum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 27, p. 66. | FNA vol. 27, p. 84. |
Parent taxa | Sphagnaceae > Sphagnum > sect. Cuspidata | Sphagnaceae > Sphagnum > sect. Subsecunda |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | S. cuspidatum var. plumosum, S. faxonii, S. virginianum | S. crispum |
Name authority | Hoffman: Deutschl. Fl. 2: 22. (1796) | Nees: in J. Sturm et al., Deutschl. Fl. 2(17): species 3. (1819) |
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