Macromitrium masafuerae Brotherus ex Skottsberg 1924

Macromitrium masafuerae

Macromitrium masafuerae Broth. in Skottsb., Nat. Hist. Juan Fernandez 2:423, 1924. [Original material: Q. Mono, Mas Afuera, 475 m, coll. C. & I. Skottsberg n. 173 (S!).]

Brownish to reddish green plants with erect branches to 5 mm high. Leaves usually twisted spirally around stem when dry, erect-spreading when moist, ca. 1.5 mm long, to 0.4 mm wide, narrowly oblong-lanceolate, 0.2–0.25 mm wide near tip; margins plane to slightly recurved, crenulate to serrulate; tip usually broadly acute or rounded with slightly mucronate apex; costa subpercurrent or projecting into mucro, abaxial surface with elongate cells nearly or completely to tip; cells of upper lamina rounded, with somewhat thickened walls, uppermost usually 5–7 μm in diameter, progressively larger below, mostly 10–12 μm in diameter, mamillose and weakly papillose; inner basal cells oval, to 20 μm long; those toward margin linear, to 40 μm long, many bearing a slight but distinct papilla. Pseudoautoicous. Setae 3–4 mm long, reddish, smooth. Capsule urn oval, ca. 1.0 mm long, smooth; mouth somewhat puckered when dry; peristome simple. Spores 15–18 im in diameter. Calyptra bare.

MAS AFUERA: Q. Mono, Sk. 173 (type, S), H. & E. 589.

The species is known only from the two specimens cited, both from Quebrada Mono. Characters of this and the preceding species seem at some variance with the original descriptions and figures. This might be partially explained by assuming the original drawings of leaf shapes were reversed. In addition, however, the papillae of the upper leaf cells were overlooked and the basal leaf cells were completely misrepresented. The difference in leaf lengths was the only really usable character cited by Brotherus.