Encalypta procera (Candle Snuffer Moss)

Common Names

Common Names in English:

Candle Snuffer Moss

Description

Genus Encalypta

Plants small to medium sized, frequently gregarious . Stems irregularly branched, occasionally tomentose ; central strand absent or weakly differentiated. Leaves oblong , elliptic , narrowly spathulate or occasionally lanceolate; apex broadly acute to rounded , mucronate to hair-pointed, occasionally cucullate ; margins plane to weakly recurved on one or both sides, entire; costa single, subpercurrent to long-excurrent, awn smooth , hyaline ; distal laminal cells more or less quadrate , papillose on one or both exposed surfaces with several large, branching or C-shaped papillae; marginal cells sometimes longer proximally, forming a very weak border ; basal cells long-rectangular, thin-walled, generally smooth, cross walls frequently distinctly colored . Sexual condition autoicous . Seta elongate , smooth, brown to red or dark red. Capsule generally long-exserted or just emergent, erect to inclined , cylindric , smooth or distinctly furrowed ; gymnostomous or peristomate, stomata few; peristome single, double or absent, exostome frequently reduced to small, irregular projections or teeth long, narrow, papillose; operculum usually conic-rostrate. Calyptra smooth or papillose distally or frequently only on rostrum, entire, fringed or lacerate below, fringe small or well developed. Spores generally large, ornamentation papillose to warty, or ridged .

Species 34: North America, Mexico, West Indies, Central America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Indian Ocean Islands (Madagascar), Pacific Islands (New Zealand), Australia.

The large, straw-colored calyptrae of Encalypta are generally present in mature colonies, growing on shallow soil over rock in exposed or moderately sheltered recesses. Encalypta can be separated from the only other genus in the family , Bryobrittonia, by papillose distal leaf cells and more or less entire leaf margins.[1]

Physical Description

Species Encalypta procera

Stems 40-80 mm; central strand small. Leaves broadly ovate to elliptic , lingulate or narrowly spathulate, 2.5-5 mm; apices broadly acute to obtuse , some-times cucullate , mucronate or occasionally short hair-pointed; one or both margins recurved from base to distal portion of leaf; costa ending before apex, percurrent or occasionally short-excurrent in distal leaves, abaxial surface smooth distally; laminal cells 12-18 µm; basal cells 30-90 µm, smooth; basal marginal cells not distinctly differentiated. Specialized asexual reproduction by rhizoidal gemmae, in tufts on stems, filamentous , branching, brown, smooth. Seta 12-20 mm, reddish brown. Capsule 2-4 mm, spirally ribbed , brown to brownish yellow, exothecial cells linear , walls thickened along ridges ; peristome double , teeth 16, reddish yellow, linear, 1 mm, papillose , endostome teeth linear from high basal membrane , adhering to exostome , papillose; operculum 1.5-2 mm. Calyptra 4-8 mm, lacerate at base, papillose. Spores 14-24 µm, granulate , brownish green. [source]

The copious filamentous brood bodies, covering the stem in sterile plants or only on the lower stem of fertile plants, will quickly identify Encalypta procera in North America, which includes specimens identified as the Old World species E. streptocarpa Hedwig, now excluded . The capsules of E. procera are spirally ribbed with a long, double peristome. Vegetative leaves are generally mucronate and somewhat cucullate, but some plants have leaves with short awns at the apex associated with the generally awned perichaetial leaves. [source]

Habit: Nonvascular

Habitat

Calcareous soil and rock, crevices and ledges [2].

Taxonomy

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Kingdom: Plantae () - Plants
- Phylum: Bryophyta () - Mosses
  - Class: Bryopsida () - Mosses
    - Order: Pottiales ()
      - Family: Bombycoidea ()
        Genus: Encalypta () - Hedwig, Sp. Musc. Frond. 60. 1801. - [Greek en, in, and kalyptos, cover or veil or lid, alluding to the calyptra]
        Specific epithet: procera - Bruch, Abh. Math.-Phys. Cl. K�nigl. Bayer. Akad. Wiss. 1: 283. 1832.
        Botanical name: - Encalypta procera Bruch, 1832

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 19-Jul-2004

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Encalypta

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 82 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

More Info

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Notes

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Contributors

Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-2005. Systema Naturae 2000. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. [http://sn2000.taxonomy.nl/Taxonomicon/]. Access date: Nov 23, 2005
"Encalypta procera". in Flora of North America Vol. 27 Page 171, 173, 174, 176. Published by Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org.
Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed February 27, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 10 providers.
Moss TROPICOS DatabaseJul 1, 2004.
Moss TROPICOS: the World Checklist of Mosses
MOST: Moss TROPICOS Database
USDA, NRCS. 2005. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5 (http://plants.usda.gov). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal February 27, 2008:

Australian National Herbarium (CANB)
British Antarctic Survey: ANTARCTIC PLANT DATABASE
Canadian Museum of Nature: Canadian Museum of Nature Herbarium
GBIF-Sweden: Mosses (S)
Icelandic Institute of Natural History: Herbarium (AMNH)
Icelandic Institute of Natural History: Herbarium (ICEL)
Missouri Botanical Garden
Natural History Museum, University of Oslo: Bryophyte herbarium, Bergen (BG)
Natural History Museum, University of Oslo: Bryophyte herbarium, Oslo (O)
The New York Botanical Garden: American Bryophyte Catalog
UNIBIO, IBUNAM: MEXU/Colección de Briofitas
University Museums of Norway (MUSIT)

Identifiers

Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 3873118
Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: MOS-35134360
Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 547758
U.S.D.A. Plant Symbol: ENPR70
Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 31360

Footnotes

"Encalypta". in Flora of North America Vol. 27 Page 10, 171, 172, 173, 265. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
"Encalypta procera". in Flora of North America Vol. 27 Page 171, 173, 174, 176. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]

Encalypta procera

Common Names

Description

Genus Encalypta

Physical Description

Species Encalypta procera

Habitat

Taxonomy

Notes

Similar Species

Members of the genus Encalypta

More Info

Further Reading

Notes

Contributors

Data Sources

Identifiers

Footnotes