Campylopus pittieri R.S.Williams
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Authority
Frahm, Jan-Peter. 1991. Dicranaceae: Campylopodioideae, Paraleucobryoideae. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 54: 1-238. (Published by NYBG Press)
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Family
Dicranaceae
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Scientific Name
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Type
Type. Colombia. Rio Lopez, Pittier 1088 (holotype, NY).
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Synonyms
Paraleucobryum densifolium Thér., Campylopus renneri Herzog, Campylopus latinervis (Mitt.) A.Jaeger, Campylopus renneri var. latelimbata Thér., Bizotia densifolia R.B.Pierrot
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Description
Species Description - Plants to 8 cm high, in whitish-green, rarely blackish loose to dense tufts, variable in size and appearance. Stems erect, sometimes branched, densely foliate with imbricate leaves ("leucobryoid"). Leaves 6-8 mm long, from oblong base narrowed to an acumen of variable length, entire at margins, or with a few teeth at the extreme apex. Costa very broad, filling 4/5 of the leaf width, excurrent, narrowed at leaf base, in transverse section with lax ventral hyalocysts, a median band of chlorocysts and a band of chlorocysts alternating with leucocysts at the dorsal side, ridged at back in the upper part of the leaf. Alar cells lacking. Basal laminal cells hyaline, rectangular, 16-32 × 38-96 µm, at margins in 5-15 rows narrower, elongate, forming a distinct border. Upper laminal cells oval, 5-10 × 10-19 µm incrassate. Lamina vanishing below midleaf. Seta 6-8(-15) mm long, brownish, sinuose. Capsule 1.5 mm long, erect, symmetric, ovoid, brownish, furrowed when empty. Operculum long-rostrate, 1 mm long. Calyptra ciliate at base.
Distribution and Ecology - On soil in wet paramos in elevations between 3400 and 4300 m, found once in southern Mexico, more widespread from Costa Rica to Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and northern Peru.
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Discussion
This species was described as a species of Paraleucobryum by Theriot. Indeed, the structure of the leaf with the broad costa and the small lamina and especially the transverse section of the costa much resemble this genus. However, since the description of sterile material by Theriot this taxon has been found several times with sporophytes, which clearly indicate the relationship to Campylopus. It is a matter of speculation whether Campylopus pittieri can be regarded as a transitional species between Campylopus and Paraleucobryum indicating a phylogenetic relationship, or whether the anatomical structure of the leaves have evolved independently as an adaptation to a higher water storage in the costa. In this regard it is interesting that Campylopus pittieri (and also C. albidovirens) as well as the species of Paraleucobryum do not contain flavonoids and that thus are not only structural homologies but also a conformity in chemical contents.
Campylopus pittieri is most closely related to C. albidovirens, which differs mainly by the presence of alar cells and a not so much leucobryoid appearance. In contrast to C. pittieri, which is confined to alpine regions, C. albidovirens occurs mainly in upper montane and subalpine forest and may be interpreted as an ecological vicariant species.Pierrot {in Bizot, Pierrot & Pócs, 1974) based the creation of a separate genus, Bizotia, on the presence of pores on the ventral hyalocysts. Such pores could, however, not be observed by the author, even after staining with methylene-blue. Placement in the genus Campylopus is, moreover, meanwhile confirmed by the existence of sporophytes.Theriot, when describing Paraleucobryum densifolium, differentiated two varieties, var. congestum and var. latilimbatum, both collected at the same locality- the var. congestum at 3400 m elevation, the var. latilimbatum at 2500 m, a distinctly lower altitude- which were newly combined with C. pittieri by Florschütz-de Waard and Florschütz (1979). The var. congestum is, according to the description, probably the typical variety, whereas var. latilimbatum is a smaller modification. There can indeed be two extreme forms distinguished, one of very robust plants and swollen foliation, much resembling a species of Leucobryum, and another of slender plants, resembling (more or less) specimens of C. nivalis. The study of herbarium material shows that both extreme modifications can often be distinguished, but are linked by intergrading forms and thus will probably have no taxonomic value.According to Robinson (1967) and Florschütz and Florschütz-de Waard (1974), Campylopus pittieri should be identical with Campylopus argyrocaulon (C. Müller) Brotherus. However, as shown by the Paraleucobryum- like transverse section of the costa, C. pittieri is quite distinct and different from that species. This transverse section resembles, in the basal part of the leaf, exactly that of Paraleucobryum enerve and in the upper part that of P. longifolium. In Campylopus, a transverse section of the costa consists of 5 layers: a ventral (stereids, substereids or hyalocysts), a median (chlorocysts), and dorsally a band of stereids, substereids or leucocysts and an epidermal layer of chlorocysts alternating with leucocysts. In C. pittieri there are only 3 or 4 layers: ventral and dorsal hyalocysts with median chlorocysts in the basal part of the leaf, or alternating dorsal chloro- and leucocysts in the upper part of the leaf. Contrary to these discrepancies in the gametophyte, the sporophyte is typical for the genus Campylopus, resembling most species of sect. Homalocarpus. It has sinuose setae (not straight as in Paraleucobryum), ovoid to short cylindric capsules (not elongate-cylindric as in Paraleucobryum), the capsules have no stomata as in Paraleucobryum and the spore size is also typical for species of Campylopus. Although a paratype of "Paraleucobryum densifolium" mentioned by Theriot has sporophytes, Theriot did not mention it in the type description.Although this species had been recorded only a few times until 1975, it is one of the most common and typical páramo-mosses. It varies considerably in the length of the leaf tip, which can be short or elongate, smooth or dentate, also at the back as a rat’s tail file, the height of the stems, varying from 1 to 8 cm, the color, which is usually pale or whitish green or rarely even blackish, and the foliation, which may be appressed or even swollen.There was some confusion with the types of Campylopus renneri and C. latinervis. The types of both species were collected at the same locality, but published in different years. The syntype of C. latinervis consists of C. argyrocaulon. Other material in the herbarium of Herzog named as C. renneri consists of C. nivalis. Furthermore, Theriot described (not validly) a variety latelimbata of C. renneri in the same publication as Paraleucobryum densifolium, which are both synonymous. -
Objects
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Distribution
Mexico North America| Chiapas Mexico North America| Colombia South America| Arauca Colombia South America| Boyacá Colombia South America| Caldas Colombia South America| Cauca Colombia South America| Cundinamarca Colombia South America| Meta Colombia South America| Santander Colombia South America| Risaralda Colombia South America| Tolima Colombia South America| Venezuela South America| Mérida Venezuela South America| Táchira Venezuela South America| Ecuador South America| Azuay Ecuador South America| Carchi Ecuador South America| Napo Ecuador South America| Pichincha Ecuador South America| Peru South America| Ancash Peru South America| Cajamarca Peru South America| San Martín Peru South America|