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Campylopus subulatus

(Campylopus Moss)

Common Names

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Common Names in English:

Campylopus Moss

Common Names in Informal Latinized N:

Campylopus Moss

Description

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Genus Campylopus

Plants usually 3-10 cm, occasionally longer . Stems usually simple , not tomentose or with dense reddish or whitish tomentum . Leaves 3-12 mm, erect-patent or appressed foliate , narrowly lanceolate, ending in a smooth or denticulate , straight or reflexed tip ; alar cells large, inflated , hyaline or reddish brown, or not differentiated; basal laminal cells thin-walled, hyaline, or thick-walled, chlorophyllose, sometimes with pitted walls, rectangular to subquadrate ; distal laminal cell walls incrassate , quadrate to short-rectangular, oblique , or oval to elongate oval; costa strong , filling 1/3-4/5 of leaf width , excurrent in a more or less long, chlorophyllose or hyaline awn, in transverse section showing a median band of deuters, an adaxial layer of hyalocysts , substereids or stereids , and abaxially layers of stereid or non-stereid cells, and an abaxial row of chlorocysts ; abaxial side of the costa smooth, ridged or lamellose. Specialized asexual reproduction by brood leaves, microphyllous branches, deciduous leaves or stem tips or rhizoidal tubers. Sexual condition dioicous. Perichaetia terminal , often bud like, rarely pseudolateral; perichaetial leaves with a broader, sheathing base and a long, narrow subula. Seta 5-10 mm, those of young sporophytes curved downward, pushing the immature capsule between the comal leaves and leaving the calyptra behind when the mature capsule curves upward, sinuose, twisted, cygneous when wet and performing uncoiling movements. Capsule erect and symmetric or curved and asymmetric , sometimes strumose , furrowed when empty; annulus present but not dehiscent ; operculum rostrate , half as long as the capsule; peristome teeth divided to the middle in two prongs, reddish or orange and horizontally striate proximally, hyaline and papillose distally. Calyptra cucullate , ciliate or entire at base. Spores ca. 13 µm, smooth or papillose.

Species ca. 180: North America, Mexico, West Indies, Central America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Atlantic Islands, Pacific Islands, Australia.

The North American species of Campylopus were revised by J.-P. Frahm (1980) based on a study of more than 1000 herbarium specimens. At that time, four species of Campylopus were recorded as new to North America and two species were placed into synonymy . The most recent checklist of the mosses of North America (L. E. Anderson et al. 1990) lists 18 species. Of these, the record of C. zygodonticarpus is based on a misidentification and C. paradoxus is a superfluous name for C. flexuosus, which is also included in the list. Since that time, C. japonicus has been newly recorded for North America, resulting in a total of 17 species, and new names have been introduced for C. aureus, C. japonicus, and C. schwarzii.

Campylopus was formerly divided into three subgenera on the basis of morphology of the transverse section of the costa. Although this classification is no longer used, the anatomy of the costa is still an important character for identification. It is, however, not in all cases necessary to prepare cross sections. The presence of adaxial stereids or hyalocysts can also be observed under the microscope by surface view of the adaxial side of the costa. Since the perichaetial leaves vary in both form and by the presence of thin-walled cells walls in species that usually have thick-walled cells, the study of such characters should be avoided. Alar cells are generally also not a valuable character in Campylopus; they are little differentiated in plants growing in damp habitats but are well developed in plants in exposed habitats with water uptake from the underground. The same is true for the presence or absence of a tomentum. Identification is facilitated if the ranges of the species are considered. Many species are found only very locally.[1]

Physical Description

Species Campylopus subulatus

Plants 0.5-3 cm, in loose , slender tufts, yellowish green to green, not tomentose . Leaves 3-4 mm, erect-patent when wet, appressed when dry, lanceolate, narrowed into a short, straight subula; margins entire below, faintly serrate at apex; apex of leaf serrate at back; alar cells hardly differentiated, only slightly larger than the basal laminal cells ; basal laminal cells thin-walled, hyaline , rectangular; distal laminal cells short, subquadrate ; costa filling 1/2-2/3 of leaf width , excurrent in a short concolorous apex, in transverse section showing adaxial hyalocysts that are 1/3 as wide as the costa, without abaxial stereids , ribbed at back. Specialized asexual reproduction by deciduous stem tips . Sporophytes not known in North America [rare elsewhere]. [source]

Campylopus subulatus is known only from two localities in California and one in Oregon. Although all records of C. subulatus from North America were referred to C. schimperi by J.-P. Frahm and D. H. Vitt (1978), collections made later in California and Oregon proved to be the former species. Campylopus schimperi grows in compact tufts in alpine habitats and differs from C. subulatus by an abaxially smooth costa, and rectangular, not subquadrate distal laminal cells. Campylopus subulatus resembles C. tallulensis. The latter differs by distinct groups of abaxial stereids and adaxial hyalocysts, which are 1/2 as wide as the thickness of the costa. [source]

Habit: Nonvascular

Habitat

Open soil in oak and Douglas fir forests , also open sand in dunes with Pinus contorta; 80-200 m [2].

 

Taxonomy

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Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 19-Jul-2004

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Campylopus

There are approximately 562 species in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:

C. acrocaulon · C. acuminatus · C. adustus · C. aemulans · C. albescens · C. albicans · C. albidovirens · C. alienus · C. alopecurus · C. alpigena · C. alpinus · C. altissimus · C. alto-virescens · C. alvarezianus · C. ambiguus · C. amblyacron · C. amboroensis · C. ampliretis · C. anderssonii · C. andicola · C. andreanus · C. angolensis · C. angustifolius · C. angustiretis (Campylopus Moss) · C. annamensis · C. annotinus · C. appressifolius · C. arbogastii · C. arboricola · C. archboldii · C. arctocarpus (Campylopus Moss) · C. arcuatus · C. arduennae · C. arenaceum · C. arenarius · C. areodictyon · C. argutidens · C. argyrocaulon · C. asperifolius · C. assimilis · C. atlanticus · C. atratus · C. atro-virens · C. atroluteus · C. atrovirens (Campylopus Moss) · C. atrovirens var. cucullatifolius (Campylopus Moss) · C. atrovirens var. gracilis · C. aureonitens · C. aureus (Campylopus Moss) · C. australiensis · C. australis · C. austro-alpinus · C. austrostramineus · C. austrosubulatus · C. azoricus · C. bartramiaceus · C. batjanensis · C. beauverdianus · C. belangeri · C. bellii · C. benedictii · C. bermudianus · C. bicolor · C. blumii · C. bolivarensis · C. boswellii · C. brachymitrius · C. brachyphyllus · C. brassii · C. brevifolius · C. brevipilus · C. brittonae · C. brownii · C. brunneus · C. bryotropii · C. buchtienii · C. caespiticius · C. caespitosus · C. cailleae · C. calodictyon · C. calvus · C. cambouei · C. campiadelphus · C. canadensis · C. canescens · C. capillaceus · C. capillatus · C. capitiflorus · C. capitulatus · C. caracasanus · C. carifolius · C. carolinae (Carolina Campylopus Moss) · C. carreiroanus · C. catarractilis · C. catharinensis · C. caudatus · C. cavifolius · C. cerastioides · C. chalarobasis · C. chevalieri

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal February 27, 2008:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Jan-Peter Frahm "Campylopus". in Flora of North America Vol. 27 Page 25, 359, 366, 367, 376, 394, 395, 440. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  2. "Campylopus subulatus". in Flora of North America Vol. 27 Page 368, 373, 374, 375. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
Last Revised: 2009-04-24