Aulacomnium turgidum (Wahlenb.) Schwaegr
mountain groove-moss (turgid aulacomnium moss)
Aulacomniaceae
Species Account Author: Wilf Schofield
Extracted from Some Common Mosses of BC
Introduction to the Bryophytes of BC
mountain groove-moss (turgid aulacomnium moss)
Aulacomniaceae
Species Account Author: Wilf Schofield
Extracted from Some Common Mosses of BC
Introduction to the Bryophytes of BC
Photograph
Species Information
Species description:
Species name meaning turgid, describing the fat leafy shoots.
Reproduction:
Sporophytes rare; have never been collected in B. C. The plants fragment readily; presumably this is the main method of propagation.
Distinguishing characteristics:
The turgid shoots, non-glossy leaves with rounded tips, combined with the yellow-green to golden colour, and open habitat, are distinctive.
Habit:
Forming yellow-green to golden yellow, tight or loose turfs with abundant red-brown rhizoids among the leaf bases.
Similar Species:
From A. palustre, which A. turgidum sometimes resembles, the absence of gemma-bearing shoots, the leaf shape (especially the rounded rather than pointed tips) and the fact that the leaves do not become twisted when dry are sufficient to separate the two. A. acuminatum is similar in form but its leaves are sharply pointed.
Illustration
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: Some Common Mosses of BC
Habitat and Range
Habitat
Usually in tundra in moist to dryish alpine sites, particularly over calcareous to neutral substrata; locally abundant in northern British Columbia.Range
World DistributionAn arctic, boreal, and alpine species in the Northern Hemisphere, extending as far south as the mountains of East Africa. In North America extending to the Appalachians of Maine and New Hampshire in the east and southward erratically to Mexico in the west.