Plants small to medium sized, forming loose or dense turfs, yellowish green, orange to brownish. Stems occasionally laxly so, few to several branched; in cross-section rounded, hyalodermis and sclerodermis undifferentiated or with the outer cells smaller and somewhat thick-walled, central strand differentiated, occasionally weak; axillary hairs of hyaline cells. Leaves appressed or incurved to individually twisted when dry, erect-patent to spreading, sometimes reflexed when wet, lingulate, obovate, ovate to lanceolate or elliptic, flat to channelled distally, sometimes concave, base not differentiated, lamina unistratose, apex rounded to acute, rarely acuminate, apiculate or not, occasionally cucullate; margins plane, rarely recurved, usually dentate to serrate, uni- to pluristratose; costa percurrent or excurrent, rarely subpercurent, surface cells dorsally elongate, smooth or papillose, surface cells ventrally mostly short-rectangular, not bulging, papillose or smooth, in cross-section semicircular, circular or elliptical, usually with a single stereid band below guide cells, semicircular in shape, hydroids generally developed, dorsal surface cells differentiated, ventral surface cells differentiated in one layer; upper and median cells quadrate, short-rectangular or hexagonal, smooth or more commonly papillose, usually thin-walled, flat or weakly convex superficially on both side; basal cells rectangular, inflated, smooth or rarely papillose, thin-walled,; marginal cells forming a border, sometimes intramarginally, of mostly quadrate, short-rectangular or linear, usually smooth, thick-walled cells. KOH leaf color reaction orange to reddish. Gemmae occasionally on rhizoids. Dioicous or monoicous. Perichaetia terminal; leaves usually little differentiated, not sheating at base. Setae usually twisted. Capsules erect, stegocarpous, immersed to exserted; urn usually cylindrical; exothecial cells rectangular, thin to thick-walled; stomata at urn base, superficial; annulus of vesiculose or rounded, persistent cells; opercula long-conic to rostrate or rostelate, occasionally systylious, with spirally twisted cells or in straight rows; peristome teeth absent, 16 or 32 straight to spirally twisted, basal membrana usually differentiated. Calyptrae usually cucullate, generally smooth. Spores papillose to verrucose.

Plantas generalmente medianas, formando manojos laxos, verde oliva hasta pálidas arriba, pardas o negro parduscas abajo. Tallos erectos, ocasionalmente laxos, poco a muy ramificados; en corte transversal hialodermis ausente o presente con células colapsada o no, 2-3 filas externo escasamente diferenciadas con células menores y con paredes gruesas, células internas mayores, con paredes delgadas, o células ± uniformes, cordón central débil; radiculosos, rizoides de apariencia lisa. Hojas adpresas hasta incurvadas encima de la base envainadora adpresa en seco, erecto-extendidas hasta patentes en húmedo, ampliamente lanceoladas hasta oblongo-espatuladas, aproximadamente hasta 5 mm de largo, planas hasta acanaladas distalmente, ápices angostamente hasta ampliamente agudos o redondeados y apiculados o no; márgenes planos rara vez recurvados, dentados hasta serrados, a menudo marcadamente serrados, limbados; costa percurrente hasta corto-excurrente, rara vez subpercurrente, células superficiales superiores generalmente corto-rectangulares, lisas o papilosas, células inferiores alargadas, lisas, en corte transversal sólo una fila de estereidas debajo de las células guía, células de la superficie superior conspicuas; células superiores cuadradas, corto-rectangulares o hexagonales, lisas a más comúnmente pluripapilosas, varias papilas, simples hasta bífidas, con paredes firmes a delgadas; células basales largo-rectangulares, bastante laxas, con paredes delgadas; células del margen formando un borde, 2-12 filas de células generalmente largo-rectangulares, lisas. En la reacción con KOH la hoja se torna roja. Autoicas o dioicas. Periquecios terminales; hojas escasamente mayores, por lo demás similares. Setas hasta 15 mm o más largas, bastante delgadas, torcidas y lisas. Cápsulas erectas hasta escasamente curvadas, cilíndricas, hasta 4 mm de largo; células exoteciales rectangulares, con paredes delgadas; estomas en la base de la urna, superficiales; anillo en 2-3 filas, persistente; opérculo largo-cónico hasta -rostrado; peristoma ausente o simple con membrana basal alta, 32 dientes largos, filamentos dispuesto en espiral, espiculados. Caliptra cuculada, lisa y desnuda. Esporas ± esféricas, débil a conspicuamente papilosas.