Oreas martiana Bridel 1826

Oreas martiana is easily recognized by its golden color, the very thick and deep polsters with only a few millimeters of living leaves and much brown material below. In fruit it is unmistakable, with pendent, cygneous setae and strongly ribbed capsules. In the Front Range of Colorado it appears to be particularly abundant.

Plants perennial, minute, 2–3 mm high, in dense compact tufts. Stems erect, branched, because of annual new-growth, densely leaved, usually radiculose within the compact tufts; triangular in transverse section. Leaves lanceolate from a narrowly oblong-ovate, erect, somewhat sheathing base, gradually narrowed to a subulate, pointed apex, crispate when dry, erect-spreading and involute when moist; margins plane or somewhat recurved, entire or serrulate only at the apex, usually bistratose; costa narrow, percurrent to shortly excurrent, smooth at back, dorsal stereid band poorly developed; upper cells smooth, rounded quadrate, but the apical cells elongate; basal cells rectangular, becoming longer near the costa, shorter close to the margins; alar cells not clearly differentiated. Autoicous. Perichaetial leaves enlarged, sheathing at base. Setae ca. 5 mm long, erect or curved when dry, cygneous when moist, yellowish; capsules ovoid to pear-shaped, with a very short neck, inclined, clearly ribbed when dry and empty, urns 1.1–2.0 mm × 0.7 mm; opercula obliquely short-rostrate; annuli poorly developed, 1–2 rows of cells, usually persistent; peristome teeth 16, reddish brown, triangular, inserted below the mouth, undivided or only perforate above, vertically striate below. Calyptrae cucullate, smooth at base. Spores brownish, 20–23 µm in diameter, warty to coarsely papillose.

Stems 1.5-8.5 mm. Leaves 1.3-2 mm, distal laminal cells 6-10 µm. Perichaetial leaves 2-2.5 mm. Seta 3-7 mm. Capsule 0.6-0.9 mm; annulus of three rows of pale, thick-walled, quadrate cells; operculum 0.4-0.7 mm; peristome teeth 190-210 µm. Spores 16 µm.

Distribution: China, India, Japan, Caucasus, Europe, Greenland, and North America (Alaska).

Habitat: on rocks or soil over rocks.

Oncophorus martiana (Hopp. & Hornsch.) Lindb. in Paris, Index Bryol. 866. 1897. Oreas martii Kindb., Eur. N. Amer. Bryin. 2: 211. 1897.

Weissia martiana Hooker, Musci Exot. 2: plate 104. 1819