do you, too, get the inescapable urge to pet moss?
if only it could purr, then we’d really be onto something
#moss #bryophyte #woodland #nature #botany
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#bryophyte
Latest posts tagged with #bryophyte on Bluesky
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Posts tagged #bryophyte
Macro photograph of Springy Turf Moss (Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus), a moss bryophyte forming a dense colony among blades of lawn grass in Devon. The yellowish-green moss grows in upright shoots that can reach around 10 cm tall, though here only the upper tips are visible between the grass stems. Each shoot rises from a reddish stem, and the pointed leaves bend sharply backwards at almost right angles, so that each shoot ends in a tiny soft star of pale yellow-green leaves. The many shoots crowd together into a thick carpet beneath the grass. When walked on, colonies of this moss feel soft and springy underfoot, giving the lawn a spongy texture. Dew droplets cling to the grass blades and moss tips, catching the light so that the surface appears bright, soft, and faintly glittering, scattered with dozens of miniature star shapes.
Some of the colony of Springy Turf Moss (Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus) that has taken over the village hall yard here in Devon.
The tiny star-like shapes are the moss leaves, bent sharply backwards.
tinyurl.com/rhytidiadelp...
#moss #bryophyte
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Macro photograph of a bright green, spiky cushion of bristle moss growing on rough tree bark among patches of yellow and pale grey lichens. Dozens of tiny brown capsules sit among the upper leaves, each topped with a pale hairy hood that makes them look like a cluster of little horns. These shaggy coverings are protective hoods called calyptrae that shield the developing spore capsules.
A rather ferocious-looking little Bristle Moss.
#moss #bryophyte
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Photo of a tuft of Shagnum moss that’s off white to light and medium green in colour. The branches of the moss plants look feathery, radiating out from the centre.
Sphagnum moss. #Newfoundland, Canada. #moss #bryophyte #plants
Photo covers about 6cm, left to right.
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Macro photograph of a liverwort bryophyte, Forked Veilwort (Metzgeria furcata), showing narrow forked green thalli forming a small tangled mat. The flattened shoots branch repeatedly into slender ribbon-like strands about 1 mm wide. Many of these ribbons extend downward together, hanging like a delicate green fringe, with each strand dividing again and again into fine forks. Along the central midrib of several ribbons are small green oblong swellings, developing sporophytes enclosed within tiny protective hoods called shoot-calyptrae. Under magnification these hoods appear faintly hairy, with delicate hair-like projections giving them a soft, slightly fuzzy outline. As they mature the calyptrae darken, becoming brownish compared with the surrounding bright green thallus. Scattered among them are pale star-like remnants, likely empty calyptrae left after earlier sporophytes matured. The image shows several stages of the liverwort reproductive structures emerging directly from the surface of the ribbon-like thallus.
Forked Veilwort (Metzgeria furcata) liverwort close-up.
I think the small green oblong structures are developing sporophytes. They are enclosed in protective hoods with delicate hair-like projections. The hoods darken as they mature.
tinyurl.com/metzgeria-fu...
#bryophyte #liverwort
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A bright green moss bryophyte growing as a loose patch on damp soil and decaying wood beside a woodland stream. The shoots rise upright in small clusters, each bearing rounded oval leaves that spread like tiny spoons around the stem. Individual leaves are only a few millimetres across and appear glossy with water droplets. Several darker stalks with developing capsules (sporophytes) are visible among the leaves, hinting at the “dotted” appearance that gives Dotted Thyme-moss (Rhizomnium punctatum) its common name. The surrounding scene includes other mosses, small woodland plants, and mossy wet leaf litter in a shaded Devon woodland.
Dotted Thyme-moss (Rhizomnium punctatum) starting to live up to its name, the leaves dotted with dark capsules.
Growing beside a woodland stream in Devon.
tinyurl.com/rhizomnium-p...
#moss #bryophyte
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Forked veilwort liverwort (Metzgeria furcata) growing on rough bark of an old tree. Other mature trees are in the distance. The liverwort forms a loose green patch made of many narrow flat ribbons (thalli) spreading across the bark. Each ribbon repeatedly divides into two equal forks, creating a branching pattern that looks like small antlers or delicate green streamers. The thalli of this bryophyte are translucent bright green when wet, with smooth edges and rounded tips. Some branches overlap and layer slightly over each other, forming a thin mat across the bark surface. tinyurl.com/ywv2xvm4
I went from seeing Forked Veilwort (Metzgeria furcata) for the first time a few days ago to realising it's everywhere in the woodland.
Those tongue-like thalli are only about 1 mm wide.
#liverwort #bryophyte
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A close view of a tiny liverwort bryophyte growing along a slender fallen twig in a damp Devon woodland. The twig runs diagonally across the image and is densely covered by a soft green mat of very small leafy shoots. Each shoot creeps closely along the surface of the wood and hangs slightly over the sides, forming layered fronds only a few millimetres wide. The colony itself is small, about 2 cm across. The leaves are closely packed and overlap like tiny roof tiles. Each leaf is rounded to oval and translucent fresh green, giving the patch a soft luminous appearance in the woodland light. Many leaves show a slight fold or pocket near their base that creates a small forward-facing flap. These pocket-like structures are subtle in the photograph but become clearer when the plant is examined under a microscope. The shoots lie mostly in two flattened rows along the stem, producing a delicate branching pattern that spreads across the twig and drapes slightly over its underside. Beneath the main patch a few slender shoots of a feathery moss hang downward, their thin leaves forming narrow green sprays that contrast with the broader rounded leaves of the liverwort. The background is softly blurred woodland — muted greens and browns suggesting bark, moss, and shaded vegetation. Moisture and shade are implied by the fresh colour and the dense bryophyte growth covering the wood. Under the microscope the leaves reveal hexagonal cells and small pocket-like lobules.
I saw this beautiful little liverwort for the first time today.
I think it may be Micheli’s Least Pouncewort (Lejeunea cavifolia).
It was growing on a fallen twig in woodland in Devon.
The whole patch was only about 2 cm across.
tinyurl.com/lejeunea-cav...
#liverwort #bryophyte
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Forked veilwort liverwort (Metzgeria furcata) growing on rough bark of an old oak tree. The liverwort forms a loose green patch made of many narrow flat ribbons (thalli) spreading across the bark. Each ribbon repeatedly divides into two equal forks, creating a branching pattern that looks like small antlers or delicate green streamers. The thalli of this bryophyte are translucent bright green when wet, with smooth edges and rounded tips. Some branches overlap and layer slightly over each other, forming a thin mat across the bark surface. The surrounding bark hosts other bryophytes including small moss shoots, showing the mixed bryophyte community typical of old woodland trees. Forked veilwort is a thallose liverwort rather than a leafy one, meaning the plant body is a flat ribbon rather than a stem with leaves.
Found this liverwort today on the bark of an ancient oak in a Devon woodland.
Forked Veilwort (Metzgeria furcata).
The tongue-like thalli are about 1 mm wide.
tinyurl.com/ywv2xvm4
#liverwort #bryophyte
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Close photograph of a bright green liverwort bryophyte, Crescent-cup Liverwort (Lunularia cruciata), growing in a small patch on damp bare soil beside a woodland path. The plant forms flat rounded plates called a thallus rather than stems and leaves. Several of these plates overlap on the soil surface. On top of it sit distinctive crescent-shaped cups (gemma cups) with raised rims. Inside the cups are clusters of tiny green discs called gemmae, these are small clones of the parent plant. When rain falls into the cups it splashes the gemmae out onto nearby soil where they grow into new plants. The thallus surface appears smooth and slightly glossy, with a faint speckled pattern from tiny air pores. The liverwort grows among small moss shoots and damp soil particles on the shaded woodland floor.
Crescent-cup Liverwort (Lunularia cruciata) was vibrant in the woods yesterday.
The crescent cups with their raised rims hold tiny plant clones called gemmae. Rain splashes them onto the soil where they grow into new plants.
tinyurl.com/mr3f8e93
#bryophyte #liverwort
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extreme close-up of late winter moss at the peak of sporophyte gametangia/ 'pod' growth. Through meiosis, haploid spores will grow into sexually differentiated male and female gametophyte (1n) generations before sperm and egg will repeat the cycle growing a new 'founder' generation of 2n sporophytes.
Ann Arbor, Mi 2/27/26 #Forestfriday #Moss #nature #Bryophyte A remarkable display of entwinining behavior of Sporophyte (Diploid/2n) Moss: as the orange gametangia reach maturity they braid with each other, both assisting individuals in spore dispersal (height) while seeking future haploid partners
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Proposed ALT: Close-up of one stalk of moss against a grey background. The moss is pale brown, shading to dark brown at the top. The stem and branches are covered with tiny leaves (phyllids) that give it a feathered or shaggy appearance, appropriate to a swamp creature. #moss #bryophyte
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No idea who or where, but that's one damned fine senior staghorn!
I can see that it all gets very confusing. I first thought your earlier photo of the #bryophyte showed the juvenile shields of the staghorn fern before they sprout their horns. But obviously they are not the same at all.
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I find the safest way to label them is as #bryophyte as that covers liverworts, hornworts and mosses.
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Photo of a sea of hundreds moss spore capsules covered in a “hairy”, off white cap. The capsules are at the tops of thin, red stalks…but not many of the stalks are visible.
A sea of haircap moss (Polytrichum sp) spore capsules. NWT, Canada.
#moss #bryophyte
Each spore capsule is about 0.5cm high.
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Photo of a tuft of moss that includes hundreds of spear-like sporophytes. The colours of this moss are striking and include green, red and purple.
Dung moss, Tetraplodon mnoides. As the common name suggests, it often grows on animal dung, but can also grow on bones, antlers and other substrates. Always an eye catcher for its striking colours.
#Newfoundland, Canada. #moss #bryophyte
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Grey Shoulder-knot found by one of the group who was looking for lichens.
Neckera crispa on moist slopes of limestone quarry. Good site for bryophytes but I didn't photograph many.
A slime mould on a rotting log, Trichia meylanii was suggested as an ID by the most slime-mould-acquainted person in the group
A few from Wednesday with the wildlife group in a limestone quarry near Pant. Grey Shoulder-knot found on a rock face, the striking #bryophyte Neckera crispa and possible Trichia meylanii, a slime-mould on a rotting log. #teammoth
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Succumbing to the serpent of shining green - @theguardian.com Country Diary - a celebration of the humble #bryophyte #moss #lowerplants #botany #Derbyshire
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
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