Home Central American Mosses
Tropicos Names Specimens References Projects Images
Home
Name Search
Family List
Generic List
Species List
!Syntrichia Brid. Search in The Plant ListSearch in Index Nominum Genericorum (ING)Search in NYBG Virtual HerbariumSearch in JSTOR Plant ScienceSearch in SEINetSearch in African Plants Database at Geneva Botanical GardenAfrican Plants, Senckenberg Photo GallerySearch in Flora do Brasil 2020Search in Reflora - Virtual HerbariumSearch in Living Collections Decrease font Increase font Restore font
 

Published In: Journal für die Botanik 1800(2): 299. 1801. (J. Bot. (Schrader)) Name publication detail
 

Project Name Data (Last Modified On 2/16/2011)
Acceptance : Accepted
Project data     (Last Modified On 2/16/2011)
Discussion:

Syntrichia usually has ligulate to spathulate leaves with lax, thin-walled basal cells, a single (dorsal) stereid band in its costa, and enlarged cells on the ventral surface of the costa. The genus was described in 1801 but until recently has been considered synonymous with Tortula. Zander (1993) recognized Syntrichia on the basis of its red KOH reaction, upper leaf margins with short cells, crescent-shaped costal stereid band, and general absence of differentiated cells on the dorsal surface of the costa. This concept is difficult to apply in Central America since one species (S. percarnosa) has a semicircular costal stereid band and differentiated cells on the  dorsal surface of the costa. Due to the similar leaf morphologies of S. percarnosa and Trichostomum crispulum it has been suggested (Zander 1993) that  S. percarnosa may belong in Trichostomum. The presence of two well-developed costal stereid bands in Trichostomum as well as the overall similarity of S. percarnosa to the S. fragilis species-complex argue against this idea.

 

Export To PDF Export To Word

Syntrichia Brid., J. Bot. (Schrader) 1(2): 299. 

Plants small, medium- to large-sized, scattered and gregarious or forming tufts or mats, yellowish green to reddish green, corticolous, saxicolous or terricolous. Stems smooth, erect, irregularly branched, red, central strand present, sclerodermis present or absent, hyalodermis present or absent; rhizoids scattered or densely clustered at base of stem, smooth, densely branched.  Leaves evenly spaced, fragile or firm, oblong-lingulate, lingulate, spathulate, ovate-lanceolate, erect or clasping at base, appressed-flexuose, twisted and crisped or spirally twisted around stem when dry, erect-spreading to squarrose-recurved when wet; apices acute, obtuse or cucullate, apiculate, mucronate, or tapered to a long, reddish, sparsely spinulose awn; laminae unistratose or bistratose; margins entire or crenulate, at times bordered by thick-walled, colored cells, plane above, recurved below; costa subpercurrent, percurrent, excurrent, to long-excurrent, guide cells and single (dorsal) stereid or substereid band present, ventral surface layer of enlarged cells present; upper cells irregularly rounded-quadrate, hexagonal, short-rectangular, oblate, or triangular, firm-walled, irregularly thickened to collenchymatous, pluripapillose, by low, o-shaped, or high, branched, c-shaped papillae, basal cells enlarged, rectangular, smooth, alar cells not differentiated. At times with asexual gemmae. Dioicous. Setae elongate, smooth. Capsules exserted, cylindrical, erect; stomata at base; annuli of 2–3 rows of vesiculose cells; opercula rostrate; peristome irregularly spirally-twisted, basal membrane short. Spores granulate. Calyptra cucullate, smooth.

 

 

 
 
© 2024 Missouri Botanical Garden - 4344 Shaw Boulevard - Saint Louis, Missouri 63110
 Send feedback|Terms Of Use|API|Linking to Tropicos|FAQ|Additional Info