Scapania undulata

Although it's our commonest Scapania, I'm always amazed at how variable the appearance of undulata can be, as exemplified by these two plants from Coynant. The green gemmiferous form was as extreme as any material I've personally encountered and despite having strongly arched keels and a rather lax appearance I couldn't make it anything more exciting. This material was collected from one of Sphagnum squarrosum-dominated  flushes described in the previous post; the dark red material was growing abundantly nearby on a clay bank below a dripping overhang alongside the river.

 

The current Glamorgan distribution suggests the species is absent from the predominantly basic habitats of the Vale and South Gower. The list of species from the Coynant site suggests there was some mild basic influence, so it will be interesting to discover in time if it really is totally absent from the coastal zone.