Flora of North America species comparison

5–20 mm.

1–3(–5) mm.

usually in distinct whorls, infolded, somewhat contorted, and weakly to strongly twisted around the stem when dry, wide-spreading to slightly recurved when moist, concave, spatulate, 2–4 × 1–1.5 mm;

margins revolute in the proximal 1/2–3/4, entire;

apices acute or sometimes truncate;

costa excurrent into a long, serrate, hyaline awn (reddish at base), often strongly papillose abaxially and serrulate near the apex because of projecting cell ends, red;

basal cells abruptly differentiated, long-rectangular, 45–80 × 20–30 µm, short-rectangular to quadrate at the margins;

distal cells quadrate to hexagonal, 12–17 µm, slightly bulging, bearing 4–6 papillae per cell.

infolded and somewhat twisted when dry, erect-spreading when moist, spatulate, 1–1.75 × 0.5–0.75 mm;

margins plane (or somewhat erect), crenulate;

apices obtuse, blunt, or emarginate;

costa excurrent into a conspicuously tapered, smooth, yellowish or hyaline awn 1/5–1/2 the length of the leaf, yellow or red, rounded and smooth on abaxial surface;

basal cells rather abruptly differentiated, often with thickened cross-walls, usually extending slightly farther up the margin than near the costa;

distal cells quadrate to hexagonal, 10–15 µm, bulging, with about 4 papillae per cell, the outermost row of cells less papillose.

red, 10–18 mm.

red, 5–15 mm.

synoicous (apparently rarely dioicous).

dioicous or autoicous.

brownish red, 3–4 mm, slightly curved, with a distinct neck;

operculum 1.5–2 mm, brown;

peristome ca. 1.5 mm, the distal divisions twisted about 2 turns, red, the basal membrane white, 1/2–2/3 the total length.

red, 3–5 mm, straight, with a distinct neck;

operculum 1–2 mm, red;

peristome 0.5–1 mm, basal membrane 1/2 the total length, red.

9–13 µm, papillose.

10–16 µm, papillose.

asexual reproduction absent.

asexual reproduction as propagula borne at the tip of the stem and in axils of distal leaves, fusiform, green, ecostate, papillose, with an elongate terminal cell, occasionally as several cells.