Plants to 6 cm high. Stem leaves erect-spreading, three-ranked, flexuose when dry, 0.8--1.5 mm, lanceolate, acuminate; margins narrowly recurved, entire; distal laminal cells quadrate to short-rectangular, smooth; basal laminal cells oblong to elongate, smooth. Sexual condition dioicous. Perichaetial leaves somewhat larger than vegetative leaves. Seta 8--24 mm. Capsule 0.6--1 mm, small, shiny; urn ovoid, inclined to horizontal; endostome teeth truncate, lanceolate, incurved. Calyptra cucullate. Spores 33--48 µm.

Confined to small mounds at the edges of pools in calcareous rich fens; low elevations; Greenland; Alta., B.C., Man., N.B., Nfld., N.W.T., Nunavut, Ont., Que., Sask., Yukon; Alaska, Colo., Ind., Iowa, Mich., Minn., Mont., N.Y.

The dense turfs of reddish-black stems with erect, lanceolate leaves characterize this species. When collections are fertile, the small, shiny, black capsules with small mouth, reduced peristome, and inclined posture clearly define the species.