Montana Field Guide

Plants: Pleurocarpous (Vitt 1988), growing in somewhat open mats (FNA 2014), or sometimes in tufts, deep green (Lawton 1971), green, or green with yellowish tones, shiny (FNA 2014), branching erratically (Lawton 1971). Stems sometimes reaching 15 cm in length, prostrate or occasionally floating, possessing a central strand; pseudoparaphyllia deltoid with a narrowly-angled apex; axillary hairs present with cells sometimes as long as 6:1. Branches resembling stems, catkin-like, appearing swollen, frequently bowed (FNA 2014).

Stem Leaves: Crowded, somewhat flattened to the stem and strongly overlapping, 1.1-1.5 mm in length, sometimes reaching 0.9 and rarely reaching 1.3 mm in width, strongly cupped, not pleated, widely egg-shaped to somewhat rectangular with ovate tendencies, narrowing to a broadly angled apex, sometimes with a short apiculus; margins curved up and inward, sometimes causing the finely saw-toothed edges to look smooth; costa reaching over half to 4/5 of the leaf length, without a spine at the distal end (FNA 2014).

Leaf Cells: Laminal cells somewhat long, slender, and a little bent or curved; basal cells adjacent to alar region somewhat long and slender; alar cells square to short and oblong, with somewhat thick walls, the region obscurely delineated and small (FNA 2014).

The similar Scleropodium touretii also has branches that appear swollen and somewhat long, slender basal cells next to the costa; however, it has an acumen the length of a few cells or more. S. obtusifolium does not have an acumen (FNA 2014).

Frequently affixed to wet stones (Lawton 1971) and soil beside and on the banks of watercourses, sometimes underwater for periods. Occurring from lowlands to about 8860 feet elevation (FNA 2014).

Dioicous. Perichaetial bracts with a long acumen bent back and downward (FNA 2014), to 4 mm in length (Lawton 1971). Seta russet, 10-15 mm tall, very coarse all over. Capsule russet, tilted (FNA 2014), the theca 2-2.5 mm in length (Lawton 1971); peristome allowing capsule mouth to open in low humidity (FNA 2014); cilia with short, crosswise bars (Lawton 1971). Calyptra without hair (FNA 2014).