Daniel H. Norris

Bryophyte Flora of the Huon Peninsula, Papua New Guinea

Meesia triquetra (Richter) Ångstr. is the only species of the family Meesiaceae occurring in Western Melanesia and New Guinea. Two collections are from high elevation wetland areas, where the plant presumably has a similar habitat ecology on wet soils as in its northern localities. Documented list of boreal to temperate northern hemisphere bryophyte species having disjunct occurrences in New Guinea, list of bipolar species, and list of widely distributed species are presented. Most of disjunct species and bipolar species are either plants of high elevation open and rocky habitats or wetland habitats such as shore meadows or bogs in New Guinea. Widely distributed species occur either in habitats created by man’s activities, or are plants of open or shaded rocky habitats, preferably cliffs.

Orthotrichum kellmanii (Bryopsida, Orthotrichaceae), a remarkable new species from the central coast of California

Abstract A new endemic moss from California is described and illustrated. The heterophyllous leaves and weakly cladocarpous growth pattern in crescent shaped cushions are distinctive features for this species. Although morphologically distinct from Orthotrichum, phylogenetic inferences based on variation in nucleotide sequences of the rbcL gene (cpDNA) suggest this species to be a member of Orthotrichum. Review of Orthotrichum specimens from California herbaria concluded that this species had not been collected previously. Orthotrichum kellmanii is currently restricted to a narrow band of sandstone outcrops on ridges overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

Homalothecium californicum (Brachytheciaceae), a new endemic species to the California Floristic Province, Pacific Coast of North America

Abstract A new species of Homalothecium from California is described and illustrated. This species was first recognized as distinctive during analysis of a DNA investigation into members of Homalothecium and related genera. Homalothecium californicum sp. nov. is distinct in its frondose branching, patent to loosely erect leaves, size intermediate between the somewhat similar H. megaptilum and H. nevadense, and cylindrical, straight, and orthotropous capsules with basally reddened exostome teeth. Subsequent herbarium and field exploration determined this new species to be a rather common and widespread species in central and northern California within a mixed conifer-hardwood transition zone. Several herbarium collections of this new species were found previously determined as Homalothecium megaptilum, H. nevadense, H. fulgescens or H. aeneum.

Description of Bryolawtonia Norris & Enroth (Thamnobryaceae), with Observations on the Genus Bestia

Bryolawtonia (Thamnobryaceae) is described as a new moss genus, comprising only B. vancouveriensis. A lectotype is selected for its basionym, Thuidium vancouveriense. Bryolaw- tonia is segregated from Bestia (Brachytheciaceae) and placed in the Thamnobryaceae mainly due to its frondose growth habit and hypnobryalean peristome. The monotypic Bestia is closely related to the genus Isothecium of the Brachytheciaceae. The several species which have been assigned to the genus Bestia Broth. are all endemic to western North America. That genus, when described by Brotherus (1906), included three species: Bestia hol- zingeri (Ren. & Card.) Broth. (= Thamnium h. Ren. & Card.), Bestia obtusatula (Kindb.) Broth. (= Iso- thecium obtusatulum Kindb.), and Bestia longipes (Sull. & Lesq.) Broth. (= Alsia 1. Sull. & Lesq.). Grout (1928) added a fourth species when he trans- ferred Hypnum brewerianum Lesq. to Bestia, and in that same work he chose Alsia longipes as the generitype of Bestia. Thamnium holzingeri is a syn- onym of Thuidium vancouveriense Kindb. in Mac., a species generally assigned to Bestia, and Isothe- cium obtusatulum is synonymous with L stoloni- ferum Brid. There is today general agreement that Bestia breweriana (Lesq.) Grout should be assigned to Isothecium Brid., under the name I. cristatum (Hampe) Robins. The range of placements enumerated above sug- gests that some bryologists have seen in Bestia fea- tures allowing placement of the genus in the Neck- eraceae or in the recently erected (Buck & Vitt 1986; Margadant & During 1982) family Thamnobry- aceae. Others, in calling it an Isothecium, place it in the Brachytheciaceae or Lembophyllaceae. Ob- viously, too, there has in the past been little agree- ment as to what constitutes the genus Bestia. Law- ton (1971) correctly excluded Isothecium obtusatulum and Hypnum brewerianum from the genus, but she considered Thuidium vancouveriense to be a Bestia. By implication she suggested that the only two species contained in the genus are B. lon- gipes and B. vancouveriensis (Kindb.) Wijk & Marg. Schofield (1968) and Schofield and Thompson

Orthotrichum mazimpakanum sp. nov. and O. anodon (Orthotrichaceae), two similar species from California

Abstract Studies of herbarium samples and field surveys in Southern California during the fall of 2008 led to the discovery of several new collections of mosses lacking exostome teeth belonging to Orthotrichum Hedw. subgenus Pulchella (Schimp.) Vitt. Some of them are ascribable to O. anodon F. Lara, Garilleti & Mazimpaka even though they display a set of characters not noticed before, considerably broadening the morphological variability of this species and making necessary an updated description. Other materials, from scattered localities along a wide latitudinal range, correspond to a here described new species, Orthotrichum mazimpakanum Garilleti & F. Lara, differentiated by a set of unambiguous characters, including almost smooth, hyaline endostomial segments and partially bistratose leaves. Both mosses are illustrated with SEM and LM photographs, and their similarities and differences are discussed.

Diphyscium chiapense, a New Species from Southern Mexico

Diphyscium chiapense sp. nov. from Chiapas, Mexico, is described and illustrated. It is unique in the involutum group by its unistratose leaf margin, and it is unusual because of its highly mamillose median lamina cells. The bistratosity, rhizoid insertion, and axillary hairs of the Diphysciaceae are described as features reliably distinguishing these plants from the Pottiaceae. Three collections of mosses from the vicinity of Mapastepec, Chiapas, originally identified as Diphyscium foliosum (Web.) Mohr represent an undescribed species of the genus. These collections contain male and female plants and a few quite immature sporophytes. Traditionally, the more diagnostic features in the genus are gametophytic (including perichaetial) characters, and mature sporophytes tend to be quite stenotypic, not usually useful in species definition. For this reason, I do not hesitate to describe a new species on the basis of largely gametophytic characters. Diphyscium chiapense Norris, sp. nov. FIG. 1-12 Species haec ab Diphyscio involuto Mitt. differt marginibus unistratosis, cellulis medianis valde mamillatis, foliis oblongo-lanceolatis. Small plants with stems to 1.5 mm long, essentially unbranched; rhizoids arising from a circular cluster of initials at the abaxial base of costa, coarsely striate to papillose, sparsely branched; stem leaves oblong-lanceolate to lingulate-spatulate, 1.8-2.2 mm long and 3-6:1 in male plants, 4.2-5.4 mm long and 5-8:1 in female plants, rounded to minutely mucronate at apex; costa strong but with indistinct margins, broadening abruptly at the base and filling 2/-3A of that base, ending at apex or minutely apiculate; median laminal cells rounded quadrate, 9-10 /m wide, strongly mamillose on both surfaces; upper marginal cells smaller and somewhat flattened against the margin, forming a slightly and irregularly crenulate border; upper lamina bistratose except near margin where it becomes unistratose; basal cells thin-walled and rectangular, hyaline, unistratose, with non-vertical end-walls; base of leaf gradually narrowed to the costa, not at all auriculate; axillary hairs polytrichoid and decorticated (see text of this paper). Dioicous. Outer perichaetial leaves strongly differentiated, to 5.5 mm long, with costa broader than in the vegetative leaves, upper laminal cells reduced in extent, and with basal laminal cells proportionately increased in number; inner perichaetial leaves progressively reduced in size with concomitant reduction of lamina cells to extinction in the innermost leaves; costa strongly excurrent in all perichaetial leaves with the apex of the lamina sagittate and sometimes slightly fimbriate; perigonial leaves somewhat shorter than adjacent vegetative leaves but otherwise undifferentiated; archegonia and antheridia numerous within their respective enclosing structures; paraphyses absent. 007-2745/81/375-378

Scouleria siskiyouensis (Scouleriaceae), A New Rheophytic Moss Endemic To Southern Oregon, USA

0.55/0 This content downloaded from 157.55.39.153 on Mon, 19 Sep 2016 04:49:01 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 376 BRYOLOGIST [Volume 84

Fissidens minutifrons (Fissidentaceae), a new rheophilous species from Ecuador

Abstract Scouleria siskiyouensis Shevock & D. H. Norris, a new species restricted to rivers and streams in southwestern Oregon is described and illustrated. This species appears related to the widespread S. aquatica Hook. in Drummond of western North America but is distinguished by a combination of features including lamina bistratose except for a few cells at immediate leaf margin unistratose, leaves lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate and with leaf apex acute to acuminate.

Orthotrichum shevockii (Orthotrichaceae), a New Moss Species from the Southern Sierra, California

Abstract Fissidens minutifrons is described and illustrated from Ecuador. The species belongs to subgenus Pachyfissidens section Pachyfissidens and is similar to F. grandifrons and F. geijskesii. The distinctive features of the species include: closely imbricate, narrowly lanceolate, elimbate leaves; taxifolius type costae; smooth laminal cells that vary from 2–4-stratose near the costae to 1–2-stratose at the margins in dorsal and ventral laminae, and 1–2-stratose from costae to margins in the vaginant laminae; laminal cells differing greatly in size, decreasing in size from costae to margins, juxtacostal cells and several inner rows larger and quadrate to oblong, several rows of outer (marginal) cells smaller and quadrate to hexagonal, the areas of larger inner cells and smaller outer cells greatest in the vaginant laminae.

Stoneobryum, a New Genus of Orthotrichaceae from South Africa and Southern Queensland

Orthotrichum shevockii from dry granitic boulders in the southern Sierra of California is described as a new species belonging to subgen. Pulchella (Schimp.) Vitt sect. Diaphana Vent. It grows in small, dark green to blackish tufts and is characterized by having highly papillose leaf cells, bito tristratose leaf margins, immersed to shortly emergent capsules, double peristomes without prostomes, with 8 exostome teeth, and 8 or 16 endostome segments, and strongly hairy calyptra with papillose hairs. During field work in the southern Sierra in some of the driest desert areas of southern California a small, dark green to blackish Orthotrichum was collected from granitic rock outcrops. Even with a hand-lens the moss looked quite distinct and different from any North American Orthotrichum species described so far. The assumption that is was something new was further supported by microscopical studies, which for example revealed the bito tristratose leaf margins, a rare character state within the genus. Among the North American species completely or partially bistratose leaves are known from Orthotrichum strangulatum P. Beauv., O. cupulatum Brid., O. hallii Sull. & Lesq., and O. pellucidum Lindb., all members of subgen. Orthotrichum, and from O. bolanderi Sull. from subgen. Phaneroporum Delogn. The species from subgen. Orthotrichum all have erect or spreading dry exostome teeth and thus differ from the plants from the southern Sierra having the dry teeth clearly reflexed. Orthotrichum bolanderi, a species found in the dry, mountainous regions of western and central California, has the dry exostome teeth reflexed-recurved, but differs in having superficial stomata, completely bistratose leaves in the upper 23, and subsheathing leaf bases. The new species was first collected by James Shevock, phanerogamic taxonomist extraordinaire, who is opening the eyes of the junior author to the bryophyte riches of the southern Sierra in California, and is named in his honor. ORTHOTRICHUM SHEVOCKII Lewinsky-Haapasaari & Norris, sp. nov. FIGS. 1-23 O. alpestri affine, sed fuscantius et minus, papillis foliorum minoribus, capsulis profunde immersis, foliis aliquantum rigidis margines bivel tristriatos habentibus. Clos ly related to O. alpestre B.S.G., but darker and smaller, with deeply immersed to emergent capsules and rather rigid leaves with bito tristratose margins. TYPE: U.S.A. CALIFORNIA. Kern Co., along California hig way 178, 1.12 km east of Chimney Peak Road, north base of Scodie Mountains, 1,150 m, Shevock 13072 (holotype, UBC; isotypes ALTA, KUO). U.S.A. CALIFORNIA. Kern Co., off the Pacific Crest Trail about 3.6 km south of Walker Pass to fork of Jack Creek, Kiavah Wilderness, Scodie Mountains, 1,600 m, Shevock 13398, 13404 (paratypes, ALTA, KUO, UBC). Plants erect in small dark green to blackish tufts, to 1.5 cm high. Leaves spreading when moist, when dry rather rigidly erect. Leaves to 5 mm long, about 4:1, ligulate-lanceolate to elliptic-lanceolate, broadest near the middle, with obtuse to rounded acute apices. Median laminal cells isodiametric with rounded lumens, thick-walled with strong corner thickenings, to 16 psm wide, high pluri-papillose with papillar salients simple to forked, extending to 14 as high as the leaf thickness. Basal juxtamarginal cells short rectangular, 1.2-2:1, pellucid and thinwalled with corner thickenings, to 16 pm wide. Basal juxtacostal cells pellucid and short rectangular, 1.5-3:1, to 18 pLm wide with lateral walls straight but mostly with corner thickenings. Abaxial cells of costa base rectangular, 2-4:1, with forked papillae mostly restricted to the distal and proximal cell ends. Margins recurved from above the base to near the apex, mostly papillose-crenate. Costa ending within 5-10 cells of apex, distally placed in welldefined keel, in transverse section homogeneous, at mid-leaf 3-4 cells thick with about 4-5 cells on abaxial perimeter. Abaxial and adaxial cells of costa si ilar to the adjacent laminal cells. Axillary hairs to 5 cells and 150 pxm long, of essentially uniform 0007-2745/98/435-438