NZ Moss Flora sample text: Buxbaumia
Buxbaumia Hedw., Sp. musc. frond. 166 (1801). Type species: B. aphylla Hedw.
Plants solitary or gregarious, on soil. Stems minute, arising from a ± persistent and pale protonema, rarely observed unless fertile. Leaves persistent at base of of setae, brown, minute, lingulate, lanceolate, or irregular, toothed or ciliate. Median laminal cells ± oblong. Costa absent.
Reportedly dioicous. Male plants minute, reportedly of a single bract-like leaf enclosing a single antheridium; not seen in NZ material. Female plants minute, reportedly with a single archegonium. Setae stout, smooth or papillose, swollen at base and surrounded by few or numerous ± persistent leaves; capsules remaining green until nearly fully mature, asymmetric at base, inclined or erect, obovoid, uniformly convex or flattened on upper surface, with a small neck; stomata in a single row at base of neck, superficial or immersed; exothecial cells often exfoliating; operculum high-conic. Peristome double. Exostome composed of entire cells, of one to several (four?) rows of irregular (sometimes rudimentary) teeth, smooth or papillose. Endostome forming a pale, pleated cone which usually exceeds the exostome in height. Calyptra cucullate, naked, covering only the operculum.
A genus of c. 10 species distributed in mostly temperate regions. Two species occur in N.Z.
Sterile material is rarely, if ever, collected. The relatively large capsules, borne on stout setae, are persistent for more than one year and conspicuous to the trained eye. The vegetative leaves of all species are minute and probably contribute little to the nutrition of the developing sporophyte. The Australian species of Buxbaumia were discussed by Stone (1983) and her notes include observations on NZ species.
Named for the German botanist, J.C. Buxbaum who, according to Crum & Anderson (1981, p. 1236), first discovered the type species in 1712 near the mouth of the Volga River.
Setae distinctly papillose; mature capsules strongly inclined or horizontal, 3-5 mm, broadly obovate with the upper surface nearly plane and surrounded by a distinctly raised border; mouth of mature capsule surrounded by flaps of exfoliating exothecial cells B. aphylla
Setae smooth; mature capsules erect, 6-9 mm, narrowly obovate and uniformly convex on all surfaces; mouth of mature capsules not surrounded by exfoliating exothecial cell B. novae-zelandiae
Buxbaumia aphylla Hedw., Sp. musc. frond. 166 (1801). Type: Europe. Not seen.
Plants gregarious or solitary, arising from a ± persistent and pale protonema. Leaves sparse (occasionally not observable) at base of setae, lingulate or highly irregular in outline and irregularly toothed or longly ciliate. Mid laminal cells mostly oblong-hexagonal, c. 30-39 × 15 m.
Setae red, 1.5-18 mm, coarsely, rarely finely, papillose (prorate) throughout, swollen at base and usually with a felt of protonema and persistent leaves; capsules 3-5 mm, inclined to horizontal, reddish- or yellowish-brown at maturity, broadly obovate in outline, plane or nearly so on upper surface, convex on lower surface, the surfaces separated by a distinct, raised, often dark red border, tapered to a narrow, ± transverse mouth which at maturity is surrounded by irregular, reflexed flaps of exfoliating exothecial cells, with a small, erect, and weakly swollen neck; exothecial cells ± hexagonal, firm-walled, mostly 40-50 m; stomata deeply immersed, 1- or 2-celled; operculum c. 0.8 mm, rounded at apex. Exostome teeth variable in number, dark brown, each tooth irregular to triangular, composed of 2-3 layers of parallel bundles of intact cells, smooth or nearly so. Calpytra c. l mm. Spores c. 5-7(-12) m, smooth.
N: N Auckland (Waitakere Ra.), S Auckland (Parawera, Rotorua-Taupo-Kaingaroa area); S: Nelson (Abel Tasman National Park), Canterbury (Lewis Pass, Arthurs Pass, Hawdon R.), Westland (Pegleg Ck.), Otago (Waitati, Flagstaff, Berwick, Paradise). Bipolar. Tasmania*, widespread but local in N Hemisphere.
On soil on alluvial terraces, rock, logs or stumps, usually in relatively open vegetation such as scrub or low manuka forest, occasional in subalpine grasslands and also in plantations of pine and larch. Numerous collections from the Kaingaroa plains are from the base, lower trunks, or rotten stumps of Larix decidua. One collection has been made from damp sandstone. Frequently associated species include Cladonia spp., Cladia aggregata, Psoroma hirsutulum, Peltigera spp., Psilopilum australe, Leptotheca gaudichaudii, Campylopus introflexus, Ceratodon purpureus, Dicranoweisia antarctica, and Lepidozia spp. On N from 100-550 m; on S from near sea level to c. 1100 m.
N collections were made in all seasons (in all but 3 months), while those from S were collected mainly in late winter to spring (9 collections made from August-November and one collection in May). Crum & Anderson (1981, p. 1236) indicate that in eastern North America the "capsules mature over the winter" and shed spores in the (northern) spring. Hancock & Brassard (1974) suggest that in Newfoundland, Canada, the gametophytes may persist for two to several years and give rise to annual crops of sporophytes.
Herbaria examined: AK, CHR, HO, WELT.
Buxbaumia novae-zelandiae Dixon, Bull. N. Z. Inst. 3(6): 369 (1929). Isotypes: N.Z., Atiamuri, K.W. Allison 1, CHR 509135!, WELT M12505!
Plants mostly solitary. Leaves numerous at base of setae, mostly 600-750 m, lanceolate, toothed but not ciliate at margins. Mid laminal cells variable in size, 27-66 ×12-15 m.
Setae red, c. 13-24 mm, to c. 350 m diam., smooth, with numerous persistent basal leaves (protonema inconspicuous); capsules 6-9 mm (including neck), nearly erect, green at maturity, narrowly obovate in outline, convex on all surfaces and lacking a border between upper and lower surfaces, tapered to a narrow, ± transverse, clearly delimited mouth (not surrounded by flaps of exfoliating exothecial cells), with a small, erect, and weakly swollen neck; exothecial cells irregular in outline, firm-walled, not exfoliating; stomata superficial, 2-celled; operculum c. 0.8-1.0 mm, rounded at apex. Exostome teeth scarcely exceeding the mouth. Endostome sometimes fragmenting to form numerous parallel filaments. Spores 9.5-12 m, finely papillose.
N: N Auckland, incl. offs. is (GB), S Auckland (Rotorua-Taupo-Kaingaroa area, Pongakawa), Hawke's Bay (Wairoa), Wellington (Francis Stream); S: Nelson (Abel Tasman National Park), Westland (Barrytown). Endemic or possibly Australasian.
Growing mostly on shaded rock (greywacke, granite, volcanics) or occasionally gravel, in open or forest situations; mostly as isolated plants in mixed bryophyte mats. On N from c. 50-510 m; known from three S collections, two from near sea level and one at c. 250 m.
Herbaria examined: AK, CHR, WELT.
The exostome in this species is extremely short and difficult to observe. Like Sainsbury (1955, p. 27), I am unable to confirm the number of rows of teeth present; the number of rows of exostome teeth is used to define subgenera within Buxbaumia by Brotherus (1924, p. 488). I have, however, had little difficulty (cf. Sainsbury 1955, p. 27) determining that the stomata in New Zealand material are phaneropore, suggesting that this species is allied to subgenus Polyodon Schimp.
Stone (1983) compared the type of B. coleryae (from New South Wales) to two specimens of B. novae-zelandiae from N. She reached the tentative conclusion that B. coleryae should be recognized as distinct, largely on characters of the operculum (form of the apex, cell size, and overall size) and a slight difference in the degree of immersion of the stomata. The type material of B. coleryae has not been seen, but in the of the variability of B. novae-zelandiae, the distinguishing features that she cites are unconvincing, e.g., the opercula examined in NZ range from 0.8-1.0 mm and are generally rounded apically. I have found the mid-operculum cell dimensions in NZ material to agree with Stone's figures, but doubt these differences, and her observations on stomata, are sufficient reasons to retain the Australian species as distinct. Phytogeographically, too, it seems likely that this species, recorded from New South Wales and Queensland, is conspecific with the New Zealand species.
Buxbaumia tasmanica Mitt. (type not seen) is based on scant and immature material (see Sainsbury 1955, p. 27) and little is known of it.