Family BRACHYTHECIACEAE

Common name

SLENDER BEAKED MOSS

Microhabitat

This moss prefers moist to wet habitats such as swampy bog areas; it is often found on rocks where there is splashing or seepage. It is also common on tree trunks and rotten stumps in the wet Redcedar/Hemlock forests of the Pacific Northwest.

Distribution

This species is found in both the northern and Southern hemispheres. In North America it is distributed most commonly along the West Coast from Alaska to California and as far east as Saskatchewan, Montana and Nevada. It also occurs in southern Ontario and southern Newfoundland and rarely in Nova Scotia.

Mat structure of gametophytes
Photo credit: Patrick Lilley

Click on thumbnails to view photos

Morphology

This moss grows flat across the ground or fallen logs or stumps and can have the appearance of a straggling bright green to dull yellow mass of thin branches. The long slender stems range in length from 5 to 12 cm. Branching is irregularly pinnate with some slender branches arising from the primary branches. The leaves are broadly heart-shaped and sharply pointed at the tip. Leaves emerge from the stem roughly at right angles, and their margins are toothed. The stalk of the sporangium is generally rough in texture but can vary. The sporangium curves downward, and the long pointed operculum curves downward. The capsules vary in orientation from horizontal to inclined.

Key identifying features

The slender, tapering branch tips and the long beak on the operculum are characteristics of E. praelongum that assist in identification, especially to distinguish it from another common Stanley Park species, Eurhynchium oreganum.

Interesting notes

Although there have been have a dozen genus names attached to this moss over the years, Eurhynchium is now the currently accepted genus name described by Nils Conrad Kindberg of Linkoping, Sweden in 1896. The morphological differences within this species have tricked more than a few bryologists. Slowly many of what were thought to be original species are being confirmed as Eurhynchium praelongum. The second species authority, BSG, stands for the Bryophyte Specialist Group which is a conservation organization. As a branch of the Species Survival Commission (SSC) of the World Conservation Union (IUCN), the BSG has put together an action plan listing the threats to endangered mosses and how to overcome them. Although this species is not endangered, proper species delimitations are essential for conservation programs to be well-targeted and effective.

Selected References

Giles K.S. 1990. Taxonomic Status of Eurhynchium brittoniae Grout (Brachytheciaceae: Bryopsida). Taxon 39(4):655-657.

Grout, A.J. 1898. A revision of the North American Eurhynchia. Volume 25(5): 221-256.

Grout, A.J. 1936. Moss Flora of North America, North of Mexico, Vol. I, Part 1. Published by the author, Newfane, Vermont.

IUCN Species Survival Commission Bryophyte Specialist Group website:
http://www.artdata.slu.se/guest/SSCBryo/SSCBryo.html

Lawton, E. 1971. Moss flora of the Pacific Northwest. The Hattori Botanical Laboratory, Ninchinan, Miyazaki, Japan.

Schofield, W.B. 1992. Some common mosses of British Columbia, 2nd ed. Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria, Canada.

United States Department of Agriculture. 2005. Integrated Taxonomic Information System Report: Eurhynchium praelongum (Hedw.) Schimp. In B.S.G. [online]. Available from http://www.itis.usda.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=547782 [accessed 7 March, 2006].

By Nancy MacPherson

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© 2006 Department of Botany, University of British Columbia