Zygodon campylophyllus Müll.Hal.
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Authority
Sharp, Aaron J., et al. 1994. The Moss Flora of Mexico. Part Two: Orthotrichales to Polytrichales. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 69 (2)
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Family
Orthotrichaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - Plants up to 15 cm high, light- to olive-green above, darker, rusty-brown, and somewhat tomentose below, forming loose, descending mats with upcurved stem tips. Stems irregularly branched, in section showing large, thin-walled, central cells and several marginal rows of small and thickwalled cells. Brood bodies not seen. Leaves loosely erectflexuose to twisted and flexuose-secund, rarely stiffly erect when dry, squarrose-recurved to sometimes widely spreading-recurved when moist, 1.7-2.2 mm long, strongly keeled, ligulate-lanceolate to narrowly lanceolate, acute to narrowly obtuse, the upper 1/3 to 1/2 sometimes broken off, broadly decurrent; margins plane or sometimes broadly reflexed below, irregularly notched and toothed in the upper 1/4, usually with 5-10 small teeth, rarely almost entire; costa ending just below the apex, covered at back by quadrate, papillose cells in the upper 1/3; upper cells 5—8(—10) µm wide, irregularly subquadrate, rounded-hexagonal or elliptic-rounded, very thick-walled, with 2-several small, round papillae per cell, sometimes nearly smooth; basal cells not numerous, elongate to oblong, yellowish, smooth, ± nodose, grading to rounded-quadrate or short-oblong at the margins. Dioicous. Setae 2.5-5 mm long; capsules about 1.4-1.8 mm long, cylindric, strongly 8-ribbed; exothecial cells irregularly oblong, slightly differentiated on the ribs; stomata in the lower portion of the urn; operculum not seen; exostome teeth erect when mature, recurved when old and dry, 8, often divided to 16 when old, finely papillose; endostome segments 8, welldeveloped, of 1 to 2 rows of cells, erect-incurved. Spores 15-20 µm, coarsely papillose. Calyptrae smooth, cucullate, naked. (Fruiting specimens are rare in Mexico; only immature sporophytes were seen.)
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Discussion
Fig. 452a-f
Z. campylophyllus C. Mull., Syn. Muse. Frond. 1: 680. 1849.
Zygodon campylophyllus resembles Z. reinwardtii in its twisted-curved leaves that are coarsely toothed at the apex and long, broad leaf decurrencies, but it has brittle leaves, particularly on lower portions of the stems. T h e plants are much larger than those of Z. reinwardtii, and the dioicous sexual condition results in a rarity of sporophytes. The upper leaf cells of Z. campylophyllus are smaller than in other Mexican Zygodons. (Species of Leptodontium resemble some Zygodons with twisted-curved leaves. However, Leptodontium has recurved lower leaf margins, C-shaped papillae, and often a border of clear cells in the upper portion of leaves.)
Zygodon campylophyllus is very close to Z. gracilis Wils. ex Berk, and may prove to be synonymous with it, in which case Z campylophyllus has nomenclatural priority. I have not seen sporophytes, or the type of Z. gracilis, and so I hesitate to place it in synonymy without careful study of European variants.
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Distribution
On tree trunks and limestone boulders, generally at 2000-2600 m alt.; Chiapas, Durango, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Tamaulipas.-Mexico; Guatemala; Dominican Republic and Haiti.
Mexico North America| Guatemala Central America| Dominican Republic South America| Haiti South America|