Thursday 11 December 2014

Possible Weissia rutilans

On the way back from a site visit to Mewslade today I stopped off in SS48T at Scurlage (a square dominated by arable and little else) in an attempt to add to the paltry 29 species recorded there. I grabbed a sample from a fruiting patch of Weissia with seemingly plane leaf margins that was growing on a bare patch of loamy soil in the centre of the track amongst low grasses. Expecting it to be W. brachycarpa var brachycarpa, I was surprised to find it had a rudimentary peristome when I pulled an operculum off first one then two capsules. The leaves are heavily coated in crud and few seem a little inrolled, so very much a provisional id for now. I'll post some pics later for comments.

4 comments:

  1. Wow! I can't think what else it could be. W. controversa and W. perssonii are usually very inrolled. Excellent record!

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  2. Nice one Barry. Is that 3rd county record?

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  3. Great, glad you agree as it keyed out without any ambiguity. Yes, third record according to my records.

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