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During a
quiet 15 minutes whilst bird-ringing in Mewslade Valley yesterday I looked at some
cliff turf by one of my nets. Encalypta
vulgaris with newly emerging capsules proved to be locally frequent in the
short turf along with associates such as Aphanes
sp., Polytrichum juniperinum, Pseudocrossidium
hornschuchianum, Riccia sorocarpa
and Trichstomum brachydontium. Whilst
this is not a new site for the E.
vulgaris, it is an extension to the colony on one of the outcrops I’d
looked at last winter and previous observations suggest it is probably scattered
throughout the valley wherever there is suitable habitat.
Also growing
here was this little Tortula with
unripe capsules making id a little problematic. I think it’s a tossup between modica and viridifolia and I’m inclined to go for the latter as some of the
hair-points were >500 µm, although the leaves aren't as rounded as
depicted in Smith. Other features noted included no apparent peristome (dissected),
smooth cells, recurved leaf margins. Any
thoughts on this welcome?
I think it might be T lanceola, as the nerve is too long for T modica. Could be T viridifolia though: need capsules for ID.
ReplyDeleteBoth the calyptra and operculum came off cleanly on the two capsules I pulled apart then squashed under the microscope and there was no sign of a peristome. I wont enter this as a record, just curiosity got the better of me!
ReplyDeleteJust checked and I recorded both viridifolia and lanceola here back in Feb in any case, so all a bit academic from a mapping viewpoint.
ReplyDelete