Scapania gymnostomophila
Marchantiophyta
Scapania gymnostomophila (Scapaniaceae)
Narrow-Leaved Earwort
Brown Limestone Scapania
Rare
Distinguishing Features
The rare (or at least overlooked in rare habitats) Scapania gymnostomophila is endemic to wet limestone and marble boulders and bedrock around creeks, where if forms tiny obscure patches among other bryophytes of brown-green leafy shoots less than 2 mm wide and 1.5 cm long. The upper lobe is between 1/4-to-2/3rds the length of the lower lobe; both have an elongate aspect, smooth margins, rounded apices and are joined along a sharply folded, linear "keel". Under the microscope, the leaf cells posess one single large oil body, a feature that is unique to this species in the genus.
Similar species
In its riparian limestone habitat and with its elongate, smooth, unequal lobes, unlikely to be mistaken for any other species of Scapania in the region. The presence of a single large oil body in the leaf cells is a microscopic character that is diagnostic for the species within the genus Scapania.
Habitat
Moist, calcareous mineral soil, rock outcrops, boulders, cliffs, and humus in the lowland and montane zones
Associated species
Jungermannia pumila, Blindia acuta, Campylophyllum halleri, Tortella tortuosa