Brachydontium Fürnr., Flora 10(2): Beil. 37. 1827.
[[For the short peristome teeth]]
Dale H. Vitt
John R. Spence
Plants of acidic rock, often volcanic, brownish. Alar cells not differentiated. Perigonial leaves broader and shorter than vegetative leaves. Perichaetial leaves similar to vegetative leaves. Sexual condition autoicous or rarely dioicous. Capsules striate; annulus compound; peristome teeth papillose or absent. Calyptra mitrate to sometimes sub-cucullate.
Species 9 (2 in the flora): North America, Central America (Honduras), South America (Brazil, Colombia), Europe, Asia, Australia.
Brachydontium is a genus of tiny, brownish plants of acidic rocks with striate capsules and peristomes ranging from well developed to completely lacking. The species in the flora are olive-green to brownish, stems ca. 0.6--2 mm; leaves 0.5--2.5 mm, erect, in ± two apparent rows, lanceolate-subulate, obtuse, leaf margins nearly entire, costa filling the subula; and the columella is not developed. The two species in the flora grow sympatrically on Mt. Rainier.
SELECTED REFERENCES
Crum, H. A. 1987. Some Latin American mosses new to science. Contr. Univ. Mich. Herb. 16: 135--140. Crum, H. A. and L. E. Anderson. 1981. Mosses of Eastern North America. Vol. I. New York. Bowers, F.D. and B.H. Allen. 1990. A new species of Brachydontium (Musci: Seligeriaceae) from Hondorus. Bryologist 93: 346--348. Buck, W.R. and A. Schafer-Verwimp. 1992. Brachydontium notorogenes sp. nov. (Seligeriaceae) from southeastern Brazil. Bryologist 95: 340--342. McIntosh, T. T. and J. R. Spence. Grimmia olympica Britt. (Grimmiaceae) is transferred to Brachydontium (Seligeriaceae). Bryologist 89: 200--202. Stone, I. 1973. A new species of Brachydontium from Australia. J. Bryol. 7: 343--351.
