Hypnum whippleanum Sullivant in War Department [U.S.], Pacif. Railr. Rep. 4(2, pap. 5): 190, plate 9. 1857; Claopodium whippleanum var. leuconeuron (Sullivant & Lesquereux) Grout

Plants to 4 cm, in mats, dark green to yellowish brown. Stems irregularly pinnate, smooth; paraphyllia absent. Leaves ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, to 1 mm; margins serrate, limbidium absent; apex gradually tapering to narrow point, hair-point absent; costa ending before apex, abaxial surface smooth; distal medial laminal cells linear-rhomboidal, 9-15 µm, 1-papillose. Seta to 1 cm, rough. Capsule horizontal, oblong-oval, 2-3 mm; operculum broadly conic, short-rostrate. Spores 9-12 µm, smooth.

Exposed soil, soil over rock, logs, tree roots; low to moderate elevations; Alta., B.C.; Ariz., Calif., Nev., Oreg., Wash.; Mexico (Baja California [Guadalupe Island: Ensenada]); Europe (Portugal); Pacific Islands (Hawaii).