ToRTULACE^.j 234 [MolUa. 



Hab. — Dried mud at edge of pools ; rare. Fr. 10 — 3. 



Mere, Cheshire {Wilson 1834) ' ' Newcastle Town-moor {Robinson and ThornhiU). Edge 

 of a fishpond at Hurstpierpoint {Mitten 1847) ' ' Weald of Sussex {Davies 1872) ! ! 



This little moss bears fruit richly, and carries us onward a step higher 



from the cleistocarpous mosses to those with a dehiscent lid and peristome. 



Like other similar species it often disappears altogether from the locality it 



occupied. 



5. MOLLIA MICROSTOMA (Hedw.) Lindb. 

 Autoicous ; in short dense tufts. Leaves lanceolate, crisped when 

 dry, acute, nerve excurrent, margin incurved. Caps, elliptic, contracted 

 at the mouth, closed by a perforated membrane, lid obliquely rostrate 

 (T. XXXIV, B.) 



Syn. — Gymnostomum microstomum Hedw. Stirp. Cr. iii, 71, t. 30, B (1792), Sp. muse. 33 (1801). 

 HoFFM. Deutsch. fl. ii, 29 (1795). Brid. Muse. rec. II, P. I, 44 (1798), Sp. Muse. I, 33 

 (1806), Mant. 15 (i8ig). Swartz Muse. Suec. 21 (1799). Roehl. Moosg. deutsch. 79 

 (iSoo). Roth Fl. germ, iii, P. I, 128 (1800). Smith Fl. brit. iii, 1165 {1804), Eng. Bot. 

 t. 2215. P. Beauv. Prodr. 59 (1805). Schultz Fl. starg. 279 (1806). Web. Mohr 

 Bot. Tasch. 85 (1807). Schwaegr. Suppl. I, P. I, 28 (1811). Hook. Tayl. Muse. brit. 

 13, t. 7 (1818). Hartm. SItand. fl. 283 (1820). Gray Nat. arr. br. pi. i, 716 (1821). 

 FuNCK Moost. 7, t. 4 (1821). Hook. Fl. scot. P. II, 123 (1821), Br. Fl. ii, 10 (1833). 

 Mack. Fl. hib. P. 2, p. 11 (1836). WiLS. Bry. brit. 44, t. 7 (1855). Sckimp. Synops. 

 34 (i860). Berk. Handb. br. m. 295 (1863). HuSN. Mouss. nord-ouest 39 (1873). 

 HoBK. Syn. br. m. 33 (1873). 



Bryum microstomum Dicks. PI. crypt. Fasc. IV, g (1801). 



Hymenostomum microstomum R. Brown Trans. Linn. Soc. xii, 572 (i8ig). Nees Hornsch. 

 Bry. germ, i, 139, t. 12, f. 4 (1823). Brid. Bry. univ. ii, 77 (1827). Hueben. Muse. germ. 

 67 (1833). De Not. Syllab. 2g3 (1838). Epil. bri. ital. 607 (i86g). Br. Schimp. Bry. 

 eur. fase. 33— 36, p. 4, t. i (1846). Rabenh. Deutsch. kr. fl. ii, S. 3, 123 (1848). Schimp. 

 Synops. 2 ed. 34 (1876). HusN. Muse. Gall. 6, t. 2 (1884). 



Weisia microstoma C. Muell. Synops. i, 660 (1849). El- danica t. 2612, fig. i. Lindb. 

 De Tort. 230 (1864). Milde Bry. siles. 44 (i86g). Juratz. Laubm. oesterr.-ung. g 

 (1882). 



Simophyllum microstomum Lindb. Rev. crit. icon, fl. dan. 74 (1871). 



Mollia microstoma Lindb. Muse, scand. 22 (1879). 



Autoicous ; densely tufted, lurid green. Leaves lanceolate from an 

 erect base, patent, twisted and crisped when dry, comal elongato-lanc. 

 concave, the margin incurved, mucronate with the excurrent nerve ; 

 cells at base elongate hexagonal, above minute, opake. Caps, exserted 

 on a yellowish seta, oval or elliptic, equal or gibbous, olivaceous when 

 filled with spores, pale brown when empty, mouth very narrow, the 

 closed orifice finally perforated in the centre ; lid paler, more or 

 less elongated, acute obliquely rostrate, annulus simple. Male infl. 

 near the female, gemmiform. 

 Hab. — On banks and barren fields, not uncommon. Fr. 3 — 4. 



Var. yS. obliqua {Nees Hornsch.) 



Plants shorter with a shorter seta ; caps, asymmetric, incurved, lid more 

 conical. 



Syn. — Hymenostomum obliquum Nees Hornsch. Bry. germ. 194, t. 12, f. 2. Brid. Bry. univ 

 ". 75- 

 H. microstomum Var. )8. obliquum. Bry. eur. 



