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Meesia Moss - Meesia uliginosa
Other Names:
Broad-leaved Hump Moss
General Description
Plant: Scattered or tufted. Dark green to yellow-green, often blackish below. Stems 1-4 cm tall, often branched. Rhizoids papillose.
Leaf: When dry, leaves somewhat contorted. When moist, leaves never squarrose-recurved. Leaves 0.8-4.5 mm long, linear-ligulate, and an obtuse to rounded apex. Leaf size increases from base to top of stem. Margins strongly recurved at mid-leaf and entire. Costa strong and broad at base, 1/3 to 2/3 the width at base.
Leaf Cells: Cells rectangular, 9-13 µm wide. Costa in X-S of large, uniform cells.
Diagnostic Characteristics
Wide costa, revolute leaf margins, and ligulate leaves often distinguish this moss. Both dry and wet, the leaves are erect (FNA 2014).
Range Comments
Greenland; Canada: AB, BC, MB, NL, NT, NS, NU, ON, QC, SK, YT; USA: AK, CA, CO, MI, MT, NY, WI, WY; n Eurasia (FNA 2014). In Montana: Fergus, Flathead, Glacier, and Lake Counties (Elliott 2016).
Observations in Montana Natural Heritage Program Database
Number of Observations: 19
(Click on the following maps and charts to see full sized version)
Map Help and Descriptions
Relative Density
Recency
(Observations spanning multiple months or years are excluded from time charts)
Habitat
Wet soil and peat in fens (Elliott 2016) and bogs, and soil-covered rock crevices (FNA 2014), often in alpine or arctic regions, though sometimes in lowlands.
Reproductive Characteristics
Autoicous. Seta is 1.5-10 cm long. Capsules are up to 4.0 mm long (with neck). Neck is often wrinkled.
Stewardship Responsibility
References
- Literature Cited AboveLegend:
View Online Publication- Elliott, J.C. and A.K. Pipp. 2018. A Checklist of Montana Mosses (1880-2018). Updated 3 January, 2020. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena, Montana. 73 pp.
Flora of North America Editorial Committee, eds. 2014. Flora of North America North of Mexico. Volume 28. Bryophytes: Mosses, Part 2. Oxford University Press, Inc., NY. xxi + 702 pp.
- Additional ReferencesLegend: View Online Publication
Do you know of a citation we're missing?- Elliot, J. C. 1993. Second checklist of Montana mosses. Unpublished report. U.S. Forest Service, Region 1. Missoula, MT. 45 pp.
- Lawton, E. 1971. Keys for the Identification of the Mosses on the Pacific Northwest. Reprinted from 'Moss Flora of the Pacific Northwest'. Published as Supplement No. 2 of the Journal of the Hattori Botanical Laboratory. Nichinan, Miyazaki, Japan. 66 pp.
- Lawton, E. 1971. Moss Flora of the Pacific Northwest. Hattori Botanical Laboratory. Japan: Yamabuki-cho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo. 362 pages plus appendices.
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