Syrrhopodon elatus Mont.
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Authority
Reese, William D. 1993. Calymperaceae. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 58: 1-102. (Published by NYBG Press)
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Family
Calymperaceae
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Scientific Name
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Type
Type. French Guiana. Leprieur s.n. (PC-MO).
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Synonyms
Syrrhopodon incompletus var. elatus (Mont.) Florsch.
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Description
Species Description - Plants a little glossy; rhizoids reddish-brown; stems to 4.5 cm tall but mostly shorter, not much branched. Leaves narrowly lanceolate above flaring base, 3-4 mm long, more or less appressed-secund but not otherwise contorted when dry, ascending when moist; margins of upper lamina with stout, paired teeth, showing stereids in section, margins of lower lamina entire, or serrulatetoothed above shoulders; teniola-like features lacking; cancellinae rounded distally, ending well below shoulders, distal cells often with characteristic brown pigment; median leaf cells pellucid, thick-walled, ca 12 µm diam., smooth and plane dorsally and ventrally; gemmae inconspicuous, ventral on tips of unmodified leaves. Spo-rophytes unknown.
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Discussion
This very rare and highly distinctive moss was treated by Florschütz (1964) and Reese (1977) as a variety of S. incompletus, but restored to specific rank by Reese (1984), after discovery of a third collection of the species, far from the collection sites of the first two specimens. A fourth specimen was collected recently by W. R. Buck in French Guiana. The plants may bear a surprising resemblance to those of S. lycopodioides. The peculiar flat cells of the upper lamina prevent the leaf from rolling up lengthwise when dry, as it does in many other species of Syrrhopodon.
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Distribution
Endemic to South America: Brazil, French Guiana, Suriname; very rare and known from only three collections in addition to the type.
Suriname South America| French Guiana South America| Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni French Guiana South America| Brazil South America| Pará Brazil South America|