FNA: Sphagnum flavicomans

	Sphagnum flavicomans
	sphagnum
Habit	Plants normally robust, sometimes moderate-sized, stiff and erect, capitulum large and typically hemispherical, usually deep reddish brown, frequently with a faint metallic purplish sheen when dry.
Stem(s)	leaves narrowly triangular-lingulate, 1.5–2 mm, apex right-angled to apiculate, border moderately strong and greatly broadened at the base (more than 0.25 width); hyaline cells rhombic, 0–1-septate, normally fibrillose near apex.
Branches	not 5-ranked, terete, long and tapering.
Branch leaves	ovate-lanceolate, 1.5–2.3 mm, straight, concave, apex strongly involute; margins entire; hyaline cells on convex surface with elliptic pores along the commissures, grading from moderate-sized pores near leaf apex to large pores at leaf base, concave surface with large round pores in proximal marginal regions of leaf.
Sexual condition	dioicous.
Spores	27–32 µm, finely papillose on both surfaces; proximal laesura less than 0.5 spore radius.
Branch	fascicles with 2 spreading and 1–2 pendent branches.

	Sphagnum flavicomans
Phenology	Capsules mature early to mid summer.
Habitat	Ombrotrophic to weakly minerotrophic and hygrophytic, forming hummocks on margins of ponds and in poor fens where some shade is available and carpets in wet forests along coast
Elevation	low to moderate elevations
Distribution	CT; DE; MA; MD; ME; NC; NH; NJ; NY; PA; RI; VA; NB; NF; NS; PE; QC
Discussion	The sporophytes of Sphagnum flavicomans are uncommon. It is associated with S. cuspidatum, S. papillosum, S. rubellum, S. pulchrum, and S. torreyanum. This species is the ecological replacement for S. fuscum in much of the Atlantic coastal plain; compared to that species, S. flavicomans is substantially more robust and has a larger stem leaf with a more pointed apex. See also discussion under 83. S. subfulvum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source	FNA vol. 27, p. 93.
Parent taxa	Sphagnaceae > Sphagnum > sect. Acutifolia
Sibling taxa	S. affine, S. alaskense, S. andersonianum, S. angermanicum, S. angustifolium, S. annulatum, S. aongstroemii, S. arcticum, S. atlanticum, S. austinii, S. balticum, S. bartlettianum, S. beothuk, S. bergianum, S. brevifolium, S. capillifolium, S. carolinianum, S. centrale, S. compactum, S. contortum, S. cribrosum, S. cuspidatum, S. cyclophyllum, S. fallax, S. fimbriatum, S. fitzgeraldii, S. flexuosum, S. fuscum, S. girgensohnii, S. henryense, S. imbricatum, S. inexspectatum, S. inundatum, S. isoviitae, S. jensenii, S. junghuhnianum, S. kenaiense, S. lenense, S. lescurii, S. lindbergii, S. macrophyllum, S. magellanicum, S. majus, S. mcqueenii, S. mendocinum, S. microcarpum, S. mirum, S. mississippiense, S. molle, S. obtusum, S. oregonense, S. orientale, S. pacificum, S. palustre, S. papillosum, S. perfoliatum, S. perichaetiale, S. platyphyllum, S. portoricense, S. pulchrum, S. pylaesii, S. quinquefarium, S. recurvum, S. riparium, S. rubellum, S. rubiginosum, S. rubroflexuosum, S. russowii, S. sitchense, S. splendens, S. squarrosum, S. steerei, S. strictum, S. subfulvum, S. subnitens, S. subsecundum, S. subtile, S. talbotianum, S. tenellum, S. tenerum, S. teres, S. torreyanum, S. trinitense, S. tundrae, S. viride, S. warnstorfii, S. wilfii, S. wulfianum
Synonyms	S. acutifolium var. flavicomans, S. plumulosum var. flavicomans, S. subnitens var. flavicomans, S. subnitens var. obscurum, S. subnitens var. viride
Name authority	(Cardot) Warnstorf: in H. G. A. Engler, Pflanzenr. 51[III]: 79. (1911)
Web links	Local Web sites: MD Biodiversity WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Sphagnum flavicomans

sphagnum

Habit

Plants normally robust, sometimes moderate-sized, stiff and erect, capitulum large and typically hemispherical, usually deep reddish brown, frequently with a faint metallic purplish sheen when dry.

Stem(s)

leaves narrowly triangular-lingulate, 1.5–2 mm, apex right-angled to apiculate, border moderately strong and greatly broadened at the base (more than 0.25 width);

hyaline cells rhombic, 0–1-septate, normally fibrillose near apex.

Branches

not 5-ranked, terete, long and tapering.

Branch leaves

ovate-lanceolate, 1.5–2.3 mm, straight, concave, apex strongly involute;

margins entire;

hyaline cells on convex surface with elliptic pores along the commissures, grading from moderate-sized pores near leaf apex to large pores at leaf base, concave surface with large round pores in proximal marginal regions of leaf.

Sexual condition

dioicous.

Spores

27–32 µm, finely papillose on both surfaces;

proximal laesura less than 0.5 spore radius.

Branch

fascicles with 2 spreading and 1–2 pendent branches.

Sphagnum flavicomans

Phenology

Capsules mature early to mid summer.

Habitat

Ombrotrophic to weakly minerotrophic and hygrophytic, forming hummocks on margins of ponds and in poor fens where some shade is available and carpets in wet forests along coast

Elevation

low to moderate elevations

Distribution

CT; DE; MA; MD; ME; NC; NH; NJ; NY; PA; RI; VA; NB; NF; NS; PE; QC

Discussion

The sporophytes of Sphagnum flavicomans are uncommon. It is associated with S. cuspidatum, S. papillosum, S. rubellum, S. pulchrum, and S. torreyanum. This species is the ecological replacement for S. fuscum in much of the Atlantic coastal plain; compared to that species, S. flavicomans is substantially more robust and has a larger stem leaf with a more pointed apex. See also discussion under 83. S. subfulvum.

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

Source

FNA vol. 27, p. 93.

Parent taxa

Sphagnaceae > Sphagnum > sect. Acutifolia

Sibling taxa

S. affine, S. alaskense, S. andersonianum, S. angermanicum, S. angustifolium, S. annulatum, S. aongstroemii, S. arcticum, S. atlanticum, S. austinii, S. balticum, S. bartlettianum, S. beothuk, S. bergianum, S. brevifolium, S. capillifolium, S. carolinianum, S. centrale, S. compactum, S. contortum, S. cribrosum, S. cuspidatum, S. cyclophyllum, S. fallax, S. fimbriatum, S. fitzgeraldii, S. flexuosum, S. fuscum, S. girgensohnii, S. henryense, S. imbricatum, S. inexspectatum, S. inundatum, S. isoviitae, S. jensenii, S. junghuhnianum, S. kenaiense, S. lenense, S. lescurii, S. lindbergii, S. macrophyllum, S. magellanicum, S. majus, S. mcqueenii, S. mendocinum, S. microcarpum, S. mirum, S. mississippiense, S. molle, S. obtusum, S. oregonense, S. orientale, S. pacificum, S. palustre, S. papillosum, S. perfoliatum, S. perichaetiale, S. platyphyllum, S. portoricense, S. pulchrum, S. pylaesii, S. quinquefarium, S. recurvum, S. riparium, S. rubellum, S. rubiginosum, S. rubroflexuosum, S. russowii, S. sitchense, S. splendens, S. squarrosum, S. steerei, S. strictum, S. subfulvum, S. subnitens, S. subsecundum, S. subtile, S. talbotianum, S. tenellum, S. tenerum, S. teres, S. torreyanum, S. trinitense, S. tundrae, S. viride, S. warnstorfii, S. wilfii, S. wulfianum

Synonyms

S. acutifolium var. flavicomans, S. plumulosum var. flavicomans, S. subnitens var. flavicomans, S. subnitens var. obscurum, S. subnitens var. viride

Name authority

(Cardot) Warnstorf: in H. G. A. Engler, Pflanzenr. 51[III]: 79. (1911)

Web links

Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).

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Sphagnum flavicomans

Sphagnum flavicomans