2. FISSIDENS PUSILLUS Wils.
D io ico u s ; very sm a ll; leaves 3— 5 pairs, narrowly lanceolate,
acuminate, entire with a v ery narrow border, nerved to ape.x ; capsule
ov a l-cylm dn c , erect or inclined, lid conic, obliquely ros tellate. (T. X , B.)
S YH .-F is s id a n tn sW u sm s .M S S . M ild e Bry. Siles. 82 (1869). Schimp, Syn. 2 ed. 113
(1876). H o b k . Syn, Br. m. 136 (1873).
F. viridulus var, /J. pusillus W i ls . Bry. Brit. 303 (1855).
F. incurvus var. pusillus S c h im p . Syn. 104 (i860). H u sN . Mouss, nord-ouest 62 (1873).
Heteroicous (dioicous and rarely autoicous) ; very small, simple or
branched at base. Stem short, inclined ; leaves pa le green, 3— 4-jugous,
upper p a ir long, linear-ensiform, the rest shorter ob longo-lanceolate,
the apex acuminate, margin quite entire, with a v ery narrow border
vanishing below the apiculus, nerve lost at the p o in t ; v ag. lam. not
rea ching middle o f leaf, inf. lam. semi-lanceolate, rapidly narrowing at
base and lost before rea ching the stem ; cells oval or rounded. Capsule
on a pa le seta, leptodermous, very small, e re c t or inclined, ovali-cylindric,
strongly contra cted below the mouth when dry; lid conic, somewhat
obliquely ro s te lla te ; peristome deep red, arising below the orifice, teeth
deeply c le ft, the legs subulate, filiform, rough. Male plant minute,
simple or with i — z branches, the b ra c ts sheathing, with a short lamin a ;
very ra rely a male ramulus arises a t base o f fertile stem.
H ae.— W e t sandstone rocks. F r . 8 11.
Hill cliff dingle and Winwick stone delph, Warrington (Wilson 1844) ! ! Todmorden
(Nowell 1S52) Mowthorpe dale and about Castle Howard (Spruce) > ! Pope’s walk,
f u n X s' 1 ■ Albourne (Mitten). Near Heptonstall and Pontefract (Dr.
Wood) 1 Ashley Mill, Bowdon and Ciitheroe (Hunt) ! 1 Gordale, Malham (Hunt
1867) ! Lovers Leap, Buxton (Hunt i860) ! ! Dailly (Hunt 1865). Seckley (Dr.
i868) . LevensPark (Barnes 1871) ! Trungle moor, Penzance (Curnow i860).
Ecclesbourne (Holmes 1876) ! 1 o . i woj.
Next to F. exilis the smallest of our species, and forming delicate green
patches on the surface of the sandstone, to -which it clings closely by the
radicular tomentum. For some excellent remarks on this species see Dr.
Spruce’s paper in Journ. Bot. 1880, p. 360.
Var. yS. Lylei Wils.
Le a v e s broader, without any border.
S y n . Fiss. Lylei W i l s . MSS. F. viridulus var. ( . Lylci W i l s . Bry. Brit. 304.
H a b .— Dam head at Airth (Lyle 1849) I Ashley Mills and Marple, Cheshire (Hunt 1868) ! !
Allesley, Warwick (Bagnall) I 1 Gilbrook (Marratt). King’s Caple, Hereford (Rev.
A. Ley).
Var. y. madidns Spmce.
L e a v e s 5-jugous, longer and narrower. Capsule subcylindric, the
lid obliquely ros trate, sometimes as long as capsule. Infloresc. most
frequently autoicou s, the male on a basal branch ; sometimes dioicous.
(S pru c e in Journ. B o t. 1880, p. 361).
H a b .— On dripping stones near the Obelisk bridge in Castle-Howard Park (Spruce 1844) ! !
Dr. Spruce having kindly favoured me with specimens of this plant, I can
only confirm the accuracy of his description both of the type and variety ;
like him I have also failed in finding any plants with the male infl. situated
as described by Schimper.
3. FISSIDENS INCURVUS Starke.
Autoicous ; leaves oblongo-lanceolate, narrowly bordered, apiculate ;
capsule cernuous, irregular, incurved, lid conico-rostellate. (T. X, C.)
SYS.-Fissidens incurvus S t a r k e MSS. R ö h l . Deutsch. Fl. iii, 76 ( 18 13 ) . S c h w a e g r . Suppl.
I ’ P. II. p. 5 . I- 49 (1816) F u n c k Moostasch. 32, t. 22, n. 2 ( 18 2 1 ). Br. S c h im p . Br.
Eur. 1, Mon. ^ t. I , p.p. {1843) ; Syn. musc. 104 (i860) ; et 2 ed. 1 12 (18 76 ). R a b e n h
Deutsch. Kr Fl. P. I l l , 304 (1848). B e r k . Handb. Br. m. 160 (1863). M i l d e Bry
biles. 81 (1869). D e N o t . Epil. Briol Ital. 485 (1869). H u s n . Mouss' nord-ouest 61
(18 73 ). H o b k . S y n . Br. m. 136 (1873).
Dicranum incurvum W e b M o h r Bot. Tasch. 162 and 463 (1807 ). S c h k u h r Deutsch. Kr.
u e w . r . 1 1 , 02, t . 3 7 (1810).
Dicr. viridulum Sm, Fl. Brit, iii, 1230 (1804), Eng. Bot. t 136S, quoad descr.
Dicr. bryoides var. ß . H o o k . T a y . M u s c . Br. 49 ( 18 18 ) .
Fiss. bryoides var. y. H u e b . M u s c . germ. 219 (18 3 3).
Fiss. tamarindifolius B r id Bry. u n . 684, p.p. (1827 ).
Fiss. viridulus var. e. incurvus W i l s . Bry. Brit, 303, t. 53 €. (1855).
Fiss. surdons D e N o t . Epil. Briol. Ital. 486 (1869).
Au to icou s ; greg arious or somewhat cæ sp ito se ; stem very short,
slender, ascending. L e a v e s 4— 6-jugous, firm, flat or decurved, oval-
oblong and lineal-lanceolate, apicu late , nerved to apex, with a very
narrow border becoming wider toward base ; vag. lam. lanceolate, h a lf
length o f leaf, infer, lam. lanceolate, very narrow at base ; ce lls small,
rounded. Seta long, red, capsule pachydermous, cernuous or horizontal,
pale brown, a rcuato-incurved, with a d istinct neck, oval or subcylindric ;
lid conic, ros tellate, red ; c a lyp tra pale, rostrate ; peristome not inserted
below the mouth. Male a t the base o f female, gemmiform, on a very
short branch ; bracts broadly obovate with a small v er tical lamina.
Hab.— C lay banks and pastures. Fr. 2— 4.
Heath, Dorset (Rev. H. Wood). Solihull (Bagnall). Truro (Curnow).
In the typical form figured this species appears to be distinct enough,
but other states are met with in which the capsule is but slightly curved
and thus differing but little from that of the next species, while the leaves
of both are nearly alike. After the fall of the lid, the capsule loses much of
Its curvature and becomes horizontal,
Var. ß . tamarindifolius Don.
Stems taller, fa sc icu la te from the base ; leaves multijugous, more
distant, shorter, broader, crisped when dry. F e r tile branch springing