Asterella lindenbergiana
Marchantiophyta
Asterella lindenbergiana (Aytoniaceae)
Rare
Distinguishing Features
Hidden in calcareous crevices at high elevations, the rare Asterella lindenbergiana is a complex thalloid liverwort with overlapping green thalli (to 3 cm long and about 5 mm wide) with darkened, upturned fringes. Unmistakeable in its fertile state, the carpocephalum is found at the tips of the dichotomizing thallus and is 3-4 lobed with purple strips of tissue surrounding the capsules, which have purple spores. The antheridia can be found on a pad level with the thallus just behind the stalk of the carpocephalum.
Similar species
Alpine rock crevices and bases are also home to other complex thalloid liverworts in the region. Peltolepis quadrata, Marchantia romanica, Reboulia hemisphaerica and Sauteria alpina can occur in similair habitats as A. lindenbergiana, but the purple skirt that surrounds the developing sporophyte on the carpocephalum as well as the purple spores are unique to the later taxon.
Habitat
Associated species