Pseudocryphaea domingensis (Spreng.) W.R.Buck

  • Authority

    Buck, William R. 1998. Pleurocarpous mosses of the West Indies. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 82: 1-400.

  • Family

    Rutenbergiaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Pseudocryphaea domingensis (Spreng.) W.R.Buck

  • Description

    Species Description - Plants often slender but rather robust, secondary stems to ca. 6 cm long, often shorter, in green to golden, mostly thin but sometimes extensive, epiphytic colonies. Primary stems creeping, slender, inconspicuous, with reduced, scale-like leaves, turning ca. 90° and becoming the erect secondary stem, the creeping stem continuing by a bud from near the base of the secondary stem, secondary stems ± erect, irregularly branched or often regularly pinnate, when dry all branches turned to one side and the secondary stems ± curved, not or scarcely complanate-foliate; in cross-section with an outermost layer of a single row of enlarged reddish firm-walled cells, subtended by ca. 5 rows of small thick-walled reddish cells surrounding larger thinner-walled hyaline cells, central strand none; paraphyllia none; pseudoparaphyllia narrowly to broadly foliose, when broad often incised; axillary hairs apparently 2/axil (1/axil in flagellate branch leaves), with 1 (-2) short brown basal cells, 4-8 oblate brownish intercalary cells, and a single elongate hyaline distal cell often with granular content. Secondary stem and branch leaves similar, appressed and ± julaceous when dry, spreading when moist, lanceolate to oblong-ovate, stem leaves usually somewhat broader, 1-1.7(-2) mm long, gradually short-acuminate, not or slightly concave, not plicate, broadly short-decurrent; margins subentire to serrulate above, entire below, mostly plane; costa single, subpercurrent to percurrent; cells long-hexagonal, ca. 6-8:1, minutely but distinctly prorulose at both ends on both sides of the leaf, firm-walled, not or scarcely porose, becoming smooth and porose toward the yellowed insertion; alar cells numerous, subquadrate to oblate, collenchymatous, not reaching the costa, extending up the margins by 30-40 cells. Asexual propagula of flagellate branches often produced in upper leaf axils, slender, to 4-5 mm long, ca. 0.07 mm diam. with leaves, usually unbranched; leaves ca. 0.2 mm long, ecostate, cells ca. 3-4:1, alar cells few. Inflorescences and sporophytes not seen.

  • Discussion

    1. Pseudocryphaea domingensis (Spreng.) W. R. Buck, Bryologist 83: 455. 1980 [1981]; Neckera domingensis Spreng., Syst. Veg. 4(1): 185. 1827; Leucodon domingensis (Spreng.) Mitt., J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 12: 409. 1869; Pterigynandrum domingense (Spreng.) Hampe, Vidensk. Meddel. Dansk Naturhist. Foren. Kjøbenhavn IV, 1: 129. 1879. Plate 63, figures 9-15 Pilotrichum flagelliferum Brid., Bryol. Univ. 2: 259. 1827; Leucodon flagellaris Bertero ex Brid., Bryol. Univ. 2: 259. 1827, nom. nud.; Pseudocryphaea flagellifera (Brid.) E. Britton, Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 32: 261. 1905, comb, inval., E. Britton ex Broth, in Engl., Nat. Pflanzenfam., ed. 2, 11: 98. 1925. Cryphaea leptoclada Sulk, Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 5: 283. 1861. Discussion. Pseudocryphaea domingensis is made distinctive by julaceous stems, flagellate branches, and unicostate leaves with elongate cells. It is unlikely to be confused with any other moss. Depauperate, eflagellate plants have been misnamed as Henicodium geniculatum, but in that species the costa ends well below the apex and the cells are unipapillose over the lumina.

  • Distribution

    Range. Florida, Mexico to Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, northeastern Argentina, Brazil, Guyana, Surinam, Trinidad; Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic). Puerto Rico, Barbados; usually growing on tree trunks, less often rocks, in fairly dry to mesic forests, from near sea level to ca. 1200 m.

    United States of America North America| Mexico North America| Central America| Venezuela South America| Colombia South America| Ecuador South America| Peru South America| Bolivia South America| Paraguay South America| Argentina South America| Brazil South America| Guyana South America| Suriname South America| Trinidad and Tobago South America| Cuba South America| Jamaica South America| Haiti South America| Dominican Republic South America| Puerto Rico South America| Barbados South America|