78 A MANUAL OF MOSSES 



Key to Genera. 



a. Dorsal lamina very narrow: peristome none: stem radiculo.se- 



bulbiform at base. i. Bryoxipliinnt. 



a. Dorsal lamina usually broad: peristome present: stern not radi- 

 culose-bulbiform at base. b. 



b. Mostly not aquatic, sometimes submerged but floating. 



2. Fissidcus. 

 b. Aquatic, filiform, floating mosses. 3. Octodiceras. 



i. BRYOXIPHIUM. Mitten. 

 ( Enstich la Briclel ) . 



Slender, dioicous, more or less densely silky-cespitose, 

 bright green or yellowish: stem stiff, oval in cross-section, 

 with central strand, radicnlose at the extreme base, upwardly 

 flattened, with distichous, closely imbricated leaves, simple or 

 irregularly branched ; leaves from a linear-lanceolate base, 

 either linear, with a small acumen, or rounded and abruptly 

 more or less long-subulate, denticulate above ; costa percurrent, 

 with a very narrow dorsal wing w r hich does not extend to the 

 base of the leaf; basal leaf-cells hyaline, rectangular, upper 

 cells chlorophyllose, triangular to irregularly trapezoidal, 

 smooth, towards the margin linear and forming a distinct 

 border; perichsetium terminal, with two concave, ovate, pro- 

 longed-acuminate, serrulate leaves with a complete dorsal 

 wing : seta shorter than the perichsetial leaves, flexuous or 

 cygneous ; capsule spherical, oval or obovate, smooth; no 

 peristome or annulus ; spores .015-.020 mm. operculum 

 abruptly and irregularly rostrate ; calyptra smooth, covering 

 about one-third of the urn ; antheridial plants similar in appear- 

 ance to the archegonial. 



Three species ; one in Mexico, one in Asia, and one in 

 Europe and the United States, rare. 



1. Bryoxiphium norvegicum [BridelJ Mitten. 



(Eustichia nori'egica Mueller). 



Plants 1-2.5 cm. long, somewhat flexuous, flat, lustrous, 

 yellow, fastened to vertical sandstone cliffs by a radiculose 

 bulbiform base ; stems mostly simple ; leaves short-acuminate 

 and as described for the genus ; costa vanishing at or near the 

 apex: seta rather thick, about 2 mm. long; capsule obovate, 

 pale yellow, mouth reddish, peristome none; operculum 

 reddish at base, attached to columella and long-persistent ; 

 calyptra cucullate, large, tipped with a slender beak. 



On shaded vertical exposures of sandstone in Wisconsin, 

 Kentucky and Central Ohio, also in Iceland, and once in Penn- 

 sylvania. 



Lawrence : "Slippery Rock Creek, Lesquereux." (Por- 

 ter's Catalogue). The writer has not been 



