Tortula muralis |
Tortula protobryoides |
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tortula moss, wall screw-moss |
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Leaves | ovate or elliptic to obovate, apex broadly acute to rounded or emarginate, short- to long-awned, margins narrowly recurved or revolute to near apex, commonly bordered distally with 2–4 rows of thicker-walled, papillose to smooth cells; costa long-excurrent, lacking an adaxial pad of cells, distally narrow, 3–4(–6) cells across the convex adaxial surface; distal laminal cells hexagonal, 10–15 µm wide, 1:1, strongly papillose with 2(–4)-fid papillae. |
ovate to oblong-lanceolate, apex broadly acute to rounded, mucronate to short-awned, margins revolute in mid 2/3–3/4 of leaf, weakly bordered from apex to near base with (2–)4 rows of weakly thicker-walled and less-papillose or smooth cells; costa excurrent, lacking an adaxial pad of cells though convex adaxially, distally narrow, 3–4 cells across adaxial surface; distal laminal cells subquadrate to hexagonal, occasionally somewhat elongated longitudinally, width 13–18 µm wide, 1(–2):1, papillose with 4(–6) simple papillae per lumen. |
Seta | 0.6–1.5 cm. |
length 0.2–0.4 cm. |
Sexual condition | autoicous. |
autoicous. |
Capsule | stegocarpic, not systylius, cylindric, erect and nearly straight, urn 1.5–2.7 mm; peristome 300 µm, teeth of 32 filaments twisted 1/2–2 times, basal membrane low, to 50 µm; operculum 0.6–1 mm. |
stegocarpic, not systylius, broadly cylindric, erect and nearly straight, urn ca. 1.4–1.5 mm; peristome remaining adherent to the inside of the operculum, teeth rudimentary to linear, to 300 µm, of several filaments variously anastomosing and weakly twisted, basal membrane length to 50 µm; operculum ca. 0.7–0.8 mm, not falling. |
Spores | 8–12 µm, spheric, finely papillose or essentially smooth. |
ca. 20–25 µm, spheric, densely low-papillose. |
Sporophytes | exerted. |
exerted. |
Tortula muralis |
Tortula protobryoides |
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Phenology | Capsules mature spring–summer. | Capsules mature winter–spring. |
Habitat | Calcareous rock, often on bricks or walls | Soil |
Elevation | low to moderate elevations | low elevations |
Distribution |
AK; AL; AR; AZ; CA; CO; DC; FL; GA; IA; KY; LA; MD; MI; MO; NC; ND; NJ; NV; NY; OK; OR; PA; SC; TN; TX; UT; VA; WA; WV; BC; NF; NU; ON; West Indies; s South America; Europe; Asia; Africa; Atlantic Islands; Pacific Islands (New Zealand); Australia
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AZ; CA; CO; MN; BC; SK; Mexico (Baja California); Europe; sw Asia |
Discussion | Tortula muralis, T. brevipes, and T. plinthobia form an apparently intergrading cline in sporophyte characters, sexual condition, and elaboration of the leaf border. There may be evolutionary advantages associated with such variability, but specimens are occasionally difficult to name satisfactorily. The laminal border of 2–4 rows of thicker walled cells is usually hidden in the margin recurvature except at the leaf apex. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Source | FNA vol. 27, p. 595. | FNA vol. 27, p. 592. |
Parent taxa | Pottiaceae > subfam. Pottioideae > Tortula | Pottiaceae > subfam. Pottioideae > Tortula |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Phascum bryoides, Pottia bryoides, Protobryum bryoides | |
Name authority | Hedwig: Sp. Musc. Frond., 123. (1801) | R. H. Zander: Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Sci. 32: 226. (1993) |
Web links |
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