Plants medium-sized to large, in loose to dense mats, occasionally tufts, green, yellow-green, or brownish. Stems creeping, ascending to erect, usually loosely foliate, not julaceous, regularly pinnate, branches densely or moderately terete-foliate; central strand present; pseudoparaphyllia with apex acuminate; axillary hairs of 4 or 5 cells. Stem leaves erectopatent, reflexed, or squarrose, loosely arranged to loosely imbricate, broadly triangular, cordate proximally, moderately concave, plicate or not; base broadly long-decurrent; margins serrulate to subentire proximally, serrate distally; apex tapered to lanceolate acumen; costa to 70–90% leaf length, sometimes subpercurrent, broad throughout, terminal spine present, rarely absent; alar cells isodiametric to short-rectangular, relatively large; laminal cells short-elongate, sometimes strongly prorate on abaxial surface, walls moderately thick. Branch leaves lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, smaller, narrower, than stem leaves; apex acuminate; costal abaxial surface and dorsal lamina more toothed than in stem leaves; laminal cells not or occasionally prorate. Sexual condition dioicous; perichaetial leaf acumen long, reflexed. Seta red-brown, usually strongly roughened. Capsule inclined to horizontal, red-brown, short-ovate, curved; annulus separating; operculum long-rostrate; peristome xerocastique, perfect. Calyptra naked. Spores 12–17 µm.

Distribution

w North America, Mexico, Central America, South America, Europe, Asia (Himalayan region, Japan, Middle East), Africa, Atlantic Islands, Pacific Islands (New Zealand), Australia.

Discussion

Species ca. 7 (2 in the flora).

Kindbergia comprises a natural group of species first recognized by H. Robinson (1962), who placed it in Bryhnia, later segregating it as Stokesiella, which appeared to be illegitimate, for which Kindbergia was substituted. These species were previously treated within Eurhynchium or Oxyrrhynchium. Molecular phylogenetic data support the position of Kindbergia near Bryhnia, and distant from both Eurhynchium and Oxyrrhynchium (S. Huttunen and M. S. Ignatov 2004).

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

Kindbergia oregana, Kindbergia praelonga

Key

1	Plants large; branch leaves 1-2 × (0.6-)0.7-0.9(-1.2) mm, distinctly plicate; sympodial branching rare; plants plumose.	Kindbergia oregana
1	Plants medium-sized to moderately large; branch leaves (0.3-)0.6-1.2 × (0.1-)0.2-0.4(-0.7) mm, not plicate; sympodial branching common; plants not conspicuously plumose.	Kindbergia praelonga