Tortula muralis

Hedwig

Sp. Musc. Frond., 123. 1801,.

Treatment appears in FNA Volume 27. Treatment on page 595. Mentioned on page 589, 590, 596.

Leaves ovate or elliptic to obovate, apex broadly acute to rounded or emarginate, short to long-awned, margins narrowly recurved or revolute to near apex, commonly bordered distally with 2–4 rows of thicker-walled, papillose to smooth cells; costa long-excurrent, lacking an adaxial pad of cells, distally narrow, 3–4 (–6) cells across the convex adaxial surface; distal laminal cells hexagonal, 10–15 µm wide, 1: 1, strongly papillose with 2 (–4) -fid papillae. Sexual condition autoicous. Sporophytes exerted. Seta 0.6–1.5 cm. Capsule stegocarpic, not systylius, cylindric, erect and nearly straight, urn 1.5–2.7 mm; peristome 300 µm, teeth of 32 filaments twisted 1/2–2 times, basal membrane low, to 50 µm; operculum 0.6–1 mm. Spores 8–12 µm, spheric, finely papillose or essentially smooth.


Phenology: Capsules mature spring–summer.
Habitat: Calcareous rock, often on bricks or walls
Elevation: low to moderate elevations

Distribution

V27 851-distribution-map.gif

B.C., Nfld. and Labr. (Nfld.), Nunavut, Ont., Ala., Alaska, Ariz., Ark., Calif., Colo., D.C., Fla., Ga., Iowa, Ky., La., Md., Mich., Mo., Nev., N.J., N.Y., N.C., N.Dak., Okla., Oreg., Pa., S.C., Tenn., Tex., Utah, Va., Wash., W.Va., West Indies, s South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Atlantic Islands, Pacific Islands (New Zealand), Australia

Discussion

Tortula muralis, T. brevipes, and T. plinthobia form an apparently intergrading cline in sporophyte characters, sexual condition, and elaboration of the leaf border. There may be evolutionary advantages associated with such variability, but specimens are occasionally difficult to name satisfactorily. The laminal border of 2–4 rows of thicker walled cells is usually hidden in the margin recurvature except at the leaf apex.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"um" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property.

... more about "Tortula muralis"
smooth +  and papillose +
smooth +  and papillose +
0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br /> (0.6 cm6 mm <br />0.006 m <br />) +
0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
of 1-2 rows +  and differentiated +
long-excurrent +  and short-excurrent +
broadly acute +  and rounded or emarginate +
Richard H. Zander +  and Patricia M. Eckel +
Hedwig +
semicircular +  and elliptical +
semicircular +, elliptical +  and rounded +
papillose +  and smooth +
usually slightly wider +
usually ovate;oblong +
differentiated +
obovoid +
cucullate +
0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br /> (?) +  and 0.6 cm6 mm <br />0.006 m <br /> (?) +
not systylius +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br />) +
dark-brown +  and yellowish-brown +
cleistocarpous +  and stegocarpous +
cylindric +
0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br /> (0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br />) +
monoicous +, dioicous +  and sexual +
thicker-walled +
1 +  and 3 +
papillose +  and smooth +
elongate-rhomboid +  and elongate +
tomentose +  and bare +
long-excurrent +
subpercurrent +
autoicous +  and sexual +
B.C. +, Nfld. and Labr. (Nfld.) +, Nunavut +, Ont. +, Ala. +, Alaska +, Ariz. +, Ark. +, Calif. +, Colo. +, D.C. +, Fla. +, Ga. +, Iowa +, Ky. +, La. +, Md. +, Mich. +, Mo. +, Nev. +, N.J. +, N.Y. +, N.C. +, N.Dak. +, Okla. +, Oreg. +, Pa. +, S.C. +, Tenn. +, Tex. +, Utah +, Va. +, Wash. +, W.Va. +, West Indies +, s South America +, Europe +, Asia +, Africa +, Atlantic Islands +, Pacific Islands (New Zealand) +  and Australia +
low to moderate elevations +
differentiated +
multicellular +
Calcareous rock, often on bricks or walls +
somewhat larger +
yellow +  and orange-red or red +
0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br /> (0.35 cm3.5 mm <br />0.0035 m <br />) +
concave;keeled;channeled;ovoid;lanceolate or lingulate +
spreading +  and appressed-incurved +
elliptic +  and obovate +
reduced +
serrulate +  and entire +
smaller +
rostrate;long-conic +
0.06 cm0.6 mm <br />6.0e-4 m <br /> (0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br />) +
differentiated +
photosynthetic +
simple +  and hollow +
4 +  and 6 +
2(-4)-fid +
lateral +  and terminal +
lateral +  and terminal +
300 cm3,000 mm <br />3 m <br /> (?) +
red +, orange +  and yellow +
consisting of 16 mostly 2 times cleft spiculose striate or papillose lanceolate teeth , , , , +  and rudimentary +
Capsules mature spring–summer. +
Sp. Musc. Frond., +
straight +
not twisted +  and twisted +
brown;yellowish-brown +
elongate +
0.6 cm6 mm <br />0.006 m <br /> (1.5 cm15 mm <br />0.015 m <br />) +
2 +  and 1 +
orange +, red +, yellow +, laminal +  and light-brown +
spheric +
4 cm40 mm <br />0.04 m <br /> (10 cm100 mm <br />0.1 m <br />) +
rounded-pentagonal +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br />) +
Desmatodon +, Phascum +, Pottia +  and Protobryum +
Tortula muralis +
species +
ovoid;cylindric +
rudimentary +
32 (?) +  and 16 (?) +
triangular +
1/2-2 times basal membrane low +
0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br /> (0.27 cm2.7 mm <br />0.0027 m <br />) +
yellow distally and red +, orange +, red +  and yellow +
rectangular +
thickened +, thin +  and thicker +
stemless +  and perigoniate +
yellowbrown;dark-brown +
occasionally smaller than the perichaetiate +