Anomobryum julaceum is a species of bryophyte

Bryophyte

Bryophyte is a traditional name used to refer to all embryophytes that do not have true vascular tissue and are therefore called 'non-vascular plants'. Some bryophytes do have specialized tissues for the transport of water; however since these do not contain lignin, they are not considered to be...

 native to all continents except South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

 and Antarctica. A. julaceum is found widespread in the temperate regions of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Its capsule

Capsule

-Anatomy:* an eggshell* Articular capsules - every diarthrodial joint possesses a fibrous or ligamentous capsule, lined with synovial membrane, attached to the adjacent ends of the articulating bones* the sac that encloses the crystalline lens of the eye...

s mature beginning in late fall and through the spring. It is most commonly found in wet crevices and on sandstone

Sandstone

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...

 cliffs. Additional micro-habitats include tussock tundra with seeps and late snow melt areas and on grantic outcrops. In eastern North America it appears to be restricted to acid habitats, in the wet crevices of sandstone cliffs or other seepy niches. Overall, A. julaceum resembles species of the genus Pohlia, and its leaves are similar to those of Bryum argenteum; it can only be separated from Pohlia and Bryum using a microscope

Microscope

A microscope is an instrument used to see objects that are too small for the naked eye. The science of investigating small objects using such an instrument is called microscopy...

. Anomobryum julaceum can be distinguished from Bryum argenteum by its strongly julaceous, shiny leaves.

Taxonomic Confusion

There has been confusion over the scientific name for this species and many names have referred to the same species. In 1802 this species was first described as Bryum Julaceum. In 1860, the species was transferred to Anomobryum filiforme. In 1935 Andrews combined both names into Pohlia Filiformis (Grout 1935). Lawton (1971), Crum and Anderson (1981), and Ireland (1982) and used the name Pohlia filiformis. Sharp, Crum and Eckel (1994) chose to use the prior name, Bryum filiforme and Noguchi (1988) used Anomobryum filiforme. Based on the international rules of nomenclature, Crosby et al. (1999) placed all of the above names under the name Anomobryum julaceum.

Technical Description

Plants are often described as small, slender, julaceous, yellowish to pale-green, often whitish green in color. They form dense shiny tufts or scattered shoots with reddish stems. The leaves are .5-1.5 mm long with narrow, linear-vermicular thick-walled upper leaf cells. Lower leaf cells are broadly rectangular, thin-walled, and often bulging. Aongstroemia orientalis is a similar looking species to A. julaceum in having short, julaceous stems and broadly obtuse leaves. The leaves are ovate or oblong-ovate, concave, not decurrent. The apex is sometimes serrated at the appex. The sporophyte has seta can grow up to 2 cm long and has spores that are approximately 10 um. The species also has a double peristome and endostome with appendiculate cilia.

Their stems are observed to be orange and forked by innovations and often producing numerous red ovoid brood bodies in the leaf axils.

Range and Distribution

Anomobryum filliforme is widespread in the temperate regions of the Northern and Southern hemispheres. In the Pacific Northwest it is known to be found in Alaska, British Columbia, Oregon and California. The Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center reports it from Baker, Clatsop, and Klamath Counties.

Threats

Trail, road, ski trail construction, and quarrying could eliminate local populations by destroying substratum and habitat. Rock climbing can impact populations on cliffs. In the state of California, it is included on the CNPS Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants .

Life History

There are few details known about the life history of the Anomobryum filiforme. Protonema, bud and shoot formation is typical for all moss development. Asexual reproductive structures have not been reported for this species.