Calypogeia muelleriana
Marchantiophyta
Calypogeia muelleriana (Calypogeiaceae)
Mueller’s Pouchwort
Round shingles on wood
Frequent
Distinguishing Features
The most common species of the genus Calypogeia in our region, C. mulleriana is a dark green leafy liverwort with linear shoots (~2mm wide) composed of round leaves that tightly overlap like shingles on a roof ("incubous"). Typically tightly appressed to decaying conifers and organic-rich soils, this species can be confirmed by hand lens examination of the underleaf, which should show two lobes that are divided to about half of their length. Like many species in the genus, C. mulleriana frequently has gemmae-bearing shoots that have more distant leaves and erect shoot apices with light-green clusters of asexual spores.
Similar species
Calypogeia mulleriana is unlikely to be confused with any other genus of leafy liverworts with the exception of Bazzania, which can show similair shingle-like arrangement of leaves. That genus, however, has leaves that have tooth-like notches at the tips and underleaves with more than two lobes. The green, rounded leaves and evenly two-lobed underleaves of C. mulleriana are similair to many species in the genus Calypogeia, but can be distinguished from other species with a hand lens. Plants of C. azurea have identical leaves and underleaves, but have a blue hue, while C. sphagnicola has leaves that are triangular in shape and do not overlap, whereas leaves in C. mulleriana are round and tightly overlap. C. integrispula and C. neesiana have unlobed underleaves and C. fissa has an underleaf dissected almost all the way to its base, while the underleaf in C. mulleriana is only dissected to about half of its length. C. suecica, a rare species of wet wood, is very small (typically <1 mm wide) and has somewhat pointed underleaves relative to the rounded underleaves of C. meulleriana, which occur on shoots typically >2 mm wide.
Habitat
Decaying wood and organic rich soil banks in forests
Associated species
Lepidozia reptans, Bazzania denudata, Tetraphis pellucidam Pseudotaxiphyllum elegans