Sample #2: Atrichum
angustatum “Slender Starburst Moss”
Figure 1: detail of leafy gametophyte, Atichum angustatum
Figure 2: single leaf; midrib clearly visible
Figure 3: seta with intact operculum
Phylum: Bryophyta
Family: Polytrichaceae
Collection Date: September 8, 2016
Collector: Kristen Maslach
Habitat: soil mound at the base of upturned trees; similar
dry, bare, disturbed soils
Location: dry creekbed, Hiram, Ohio
Description: Acrocarpous; lance-shaped leaf with a midrib;
dark green; loosely associated shoots; found in dry soil; surface of the leaf
rippled when wet; midrib conspicuous all the way to the leaf tip; leaves .5 mm
wide
Key Used: McKnight, Karl, Joseph Rohrer, Kirsten McKnight
Ward and Warren Perdrizet (2013). Common Mosses of the Northeast and
Appalachians. Princeton, New Jersey:
Princeton University Press.
Steps to Identify:
Acrocarpous:
“Individual stems typically stand upright…stems simple or sparsely forked (pg
10)”
Lance-shaped
leaf with midrib: “generally straight…sides that gradually taper to a point (pg
12)”
Dark green,
loosely associated shoots: “darcker green…shoots loosely associated (pg342)’
Found in dry soil: “plants on siol, rocks, trees or logs in
dry areas =(pg 342)”
“Surface of the leaf rippled or wavy when wet (pg 343)”
Midrip to leaf tip: “leaf midrib conspicuous to leaf tip (pg
343)”
Leaves .5 mm wide: “leaves 0.4-0.8 mm wide (pg 343)”
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