Fam. 4. POLYTRICHACEÆ.
C A T H A R IN E A E h r h .
1. C. angustata Brid.
2. — undulata (L.) Weh. Mohr.
3. — crispa Janus.
O L IG O T R IC H U M L a m . D e C .
1. 0. incurvum (Huds.) Lindh.
P O L Y T R IC H U M D i l l . L .
1. P. subrotundum Huds.
2. — aloides Hedw.
S. — urnigerum L .
4. — alpinum L .
5. — sexangiilare Floerke.
6. — gracile Dicks.
7. — attenuatimi Menz.
8. — piliferum Schreh.
9. — juniperitium Willd.
10. — strictum Banks.
11. — commune L .
Mosses variable in size and habit ; sometimes short and simple,
sometimes very tall, dendroid and branched, with the stem highly
developed, having a central woody axis.
Innovations basal, or in the male plan ts the axis is continued
from the centre o f the inflorescence. L e a v e s firm and rigid, the nerve
generally expanded and bearing on the upper surface a variable
number o f more or less developed v e r tic a l lamellæ, w hich vanish
toward the sheathing base o f the le a f ; th e margin usually serrate, the
ce lls o f the non-lamellose p a rt mnioid.
Inflorescence almost a lw ay s dioicous, the male discoid with the
b ra c ts often coloured.
C a lyp tra cucullate, naked or spinulose or with a few hairs, or
most frequently covered w ith long v illose pendent hairs. Capsule
on a lon g wiry pedicel, terete or angula r or ra re ly depressed, with
stomata frequently present in the cuticle.
Peristome o f 32 or 64 erect, solid, linguiform te e th , united at
apex to the discoidal dilated extremity o f the columella (the epiphragm
or tympanum) ; sometimes broken up into a pencil o f c ilia ; v ery rarely
none. Inhabiting the ground, e spe c ia lly on moorlands, and often
oc cupying extensive tra cts.
This great family of 200 or more species, is a most natural one,
approaching the Mniaceæ in some points, but yet possessed of characters
quite peculiar ; notably the solid tongue-shaped teeth, the membranous
dilated discoid top of the columella,- the lamelligerous leaves, and the
densely pilose calyptra. B y the well-developed fibro-vascular cells forming
a woody axis to the stem, and the noble tree like habit of some exotic
forms, we may perhaps regard them as standing at the head o f all mosses.
The structure of the peristomial teeth is well worth a careful examination,
as it differs from that of all other mosses. Each tooth consists of
several layers of fine threads, held together by cellular material, and we
can trace each thread down from the apex of one tooth, through the basal
membrane, and up again to the apex of the adjacent tooth, those in the
axial line being more condensed. The basal membrane is a continuation
of the lining of the capsule (endothecal membrane), and consists of several
rows of thick-walled rectangular cells.
Prof. Schimper divides the Polytrichaceæ into three sub-families ;
I. Polytricheæ, comprising nearly all the species. 2. Lyellieæ, for the
genus Lyellia, containing two East Indian species, remarkable for the
absence of peristome, though with a button shaped epiphragm closing the
mouth of the capsule. 3. Dawsonleæ, including the Australian genus
Dawsonia of 4 species, among which stands D. snperba, one of the most