Illustrator: Patricia M. Eckel

Copyright: Flora of North America Association

Plants 2–4 cm, light green or yellow-green. Leaves ovate, concave, 2–3.5 mm; margins entire or nearly so; apex acuminate; costa ending in subula; distal laminal cells hexagonal, 30 µm. Sexual condition autoicous. Seta clear pale yellow to stramineous, 1–2 cm. Capsule not cleistocarpous, clear pale yellow to stramineous, long-ovate; hypophysis often narrower than urn, rarely broader; stomata confined to distal hypophysis; operculum bluntly conic. Calyptra conic-mitrate or cucullate. Spores 8 µm, smooth.

Phenology: Capsules mature summer.
Habitat: Caribou or muskox dung
Elevation: low to high elevations

Distribution

• Generated Map
• Legacy Map

Greenland, B.C., Nfld. and Labr., N.W.T., Nunavut, Yukon, Alaska, n Europe.

Discussion

Tetraplodon pallidus and T. paradoxus often grow intermixed and can be distinguished by several characters (W. C. Steere 1977b). Tetraplodon pallidus has a large operculum that falls off exposing a broad, square-shaped mouth and well-developed, reflexed teeth, and its distal laminal cell walls are thin.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.