Sphagnum lindbergii |
Sphagnum quinquefarium |
|
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brown-stem peat-moss, Lindberg's sphagnum |
five-rank peat-moss, sphagnum |
|
Habit | Plants moderate-sized to large, moderately densely branched; green to brown, often bluish tinged and/or shiny when dry; capitulum flattopped with a conspicuous terminal bud. | Plants moderate-sized, typically stiff and compact, capitulum usually hemispherical; green, grayish white, pale yellow, purplish red, may have a slight metallic luster when dry. |
Stem(s) | leaves lingulate-spatulate, large, 1.3–1.6 mm; appressed to stem; apex very broad and lacerate; hyaline cells efibrillose and aporose, often septate. |
leaves triangular to triangular-lingulate, 1–1.3 mm, apex acute to slightly obtuse, border broad at base (more than 0.25 width); hyaline cells narrowly rhomboid, mostly 0–1-septate and mostly efibrillose. |
Branches | strongly 5-ranked and straight. |
usually strongly 5-ranked. |
Branch leaves | ovate-lanceolate, 1.5–3 mm; straight to slightly subsecund; imbricate to somewhat reflexed and not undulate; margins entire; hyaline cells long and narrow, length to width ca. 10:1 on convex surface with 1 or more small pores in the cell ends and angles and often with numerous pseudopores along the margins, on concave surface with large round wall thinnings on the cell ends and angles; chlorophyllous cells triangular to trapezoidal in transverse section, apex often exposed on concave surface. |
ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 1.1–1.5 mm, concave, straight, apex slightly involute; hyaline cells on convex surface with numerous oval to elliptic pores along commissures grading from small pores near apex to large round pores at base, concave surface with large round pores in proximal portions of leaf. |
Sexual condition | monoicous or dioicous. |
monoicous or dioicous. |
Spores | 22–34 µm; both surfaces smooth, apparent ridged border on proximal surface; proximal laesura more than 0.5 spore radius. |
19–27 µm, finely papillose on proximal surface, pusticulate on distal surface; proximal laesura less than 0.4 spore radius. |
Branch | fascicles with 2 spreading and 2 pendent branches, leaves not much elongated at distal end.; branch stems green, with cortex enlarged with retort cells. |
fascicles with mostly 3 spreading and 1–2 pendent branches. |
Sphagnum lindbergii |
Sphagnum quinquefarium |
|
Phenology | Capsules mature mid summer. | |
Habitat | Widespread forming carpets in ombrotrophic to weakly minerotrophic boreal mires | Weakly minerotrophic and hygrophytic, wet mineral bedrock, damp coniferous humus along coast and in montane regions |
Elevation | low to high elevations | low to high elevations |
Distribution |
AK; CO; NH; NY; WA; AB; BC; MB; NF; NS; NT; NU; ON; QC; YT; Greenland; Eurasia |
AK; CT; GA; MA; MD; ME; MN; NC; NH; NY; PA; TN; VA; VT; WV; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; ON; QC; Eurasia |
Discussion | Sporophytes are uncommon. Sphagnum lindbergii is normally easily distinguished from other carpet-forming species of sect. Cuspidata by its large, strongly lacerate stem leaf and dark brown to black stem. Sexual condition is taken from from L. I. Savicz-Lubitzkaya and Z. N. Smirnova (1968). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Sporophytes are common in Sphagnum quinquefarium. This species is usually associated with S. capillifolium, S. girgensohnii, and S. russowii. No other species of sect. Acutifolia has the combination of quinquefarious branch leaves and three spreading branches per fascicle. Sphagnum rubiginosum has three spreading branches but the branch leaves are quite unranked and its lingulate stem leaf is quite distinct from the triangular stem leaf of S. quinquefarium. See also discussion under 86. S. talbotianum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 27, p. 70. | FNA vol. 27, p. 96. |
Parent taxa | Sphagnaceae > Sphagnum > sect. Cuspidata | Sphagnaceae > Sphagnum > sect. Acutifolia |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | S. acutifolium var. quinquefarium, S. schofieldii | |
Name authority | Schimper: Öfvers. Kongl. Vetensk.-Akad. Förh. 14: 126. (1857) | (Lindberg) Warnstorf: Hedwigia 25: 222. (1886) |
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