Moss characters
| Bryopsida species by reproductive structures | |||||||||||||
| GRIMMIALES | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Grimmiaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Schistidium rivulare | |||||||||||||
| DICRANALES | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Ditrichaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Ceratodon purpureus | Soil, wall-tops, rotten wood | Ubiquitous | |||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Rhabdoweisiaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Dicranoweisia cirrata | Trees, wooden posts | Especially common in lowlands | |||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Leucobryaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| POTTIALES | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Pottiaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Tortula muralis | Brick and stone walls | Common in towns | |||||||||||
| Weissia controversa | Bare soil or soil-filled rock crevices | Loamy banks; less calcareous rocks | |||||||||||
| SPLACHNALES | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Splachnaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Tetraplodon mnioides | Well-decayed sheep bone fragments | Mountainous districts | |||||||||||
| BRYALES | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Bryaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Bryum argenteum | Paving, roadsides, roofs and wall-tops | Man-made environments and by gull colonies | |||||||||||
| Bryum capillare | Rocks, trees, fences | Lowlands and mountains | |||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Mniaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Mnium hornum | Humus, peat, rotten wood, rock ledges | Varied including Beech woods and grassy areas near the sea | |||||||||||
| Rhizomnium punctatum | Wet, stony streambanks, deep rock clefts, decaying tree stumps and logs | Shady, damp rocky areas and woodlands | |||||||||||
| BARTRAMIALES | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Bartramiaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Bartramia pomiformis | Sand and rocks; calcifuge | Sandy banks in lowlands; rocks in mountainous districts | |||||||||||
| ORTHOTRICHALES | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Orthotrichaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Orthotrichum rivulare | Trees, fences, roadside pavments, wall-tops | Flourishes in towns | |||||||||||
| Ulota bruchii | |||||||||||||
| Ulota phyllantha | |||||||||||||
| RHIZOGONIALES | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Aulacomniaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Aulacomnium androgynum | |||||||||||||
| HYPNALES | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Amblystegiaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Amblystegium serpens | |||||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Gemmae | Seta | Capsule | |||||||||||
| Brachytheciaceae | Ball | Tips | Yellow | Orange | Red | Brown | Drooping | Thin | Spherical | Ampule | Immersed | Substrate | Habitat |
| Brachythecium plumosum | |||||||||||||
| Brachythecium populeum | |||||||||||||
| Brachythecium rutabulum | |||||||||||||
| Eurhynchium striatum | |||||||||||||
| Rhynchostegium confertum | |||||||||||||
Go back to: Moss reproductive structures character lists
- Taxonomic hierarchy after Buck and Goffinet (2000).
- Only Class Bryopsida, by far the largest class of mosses, is covered in the above table.
- Growth habit terms in column headings are more fully described in the corresponding character lists page (from which this table was reached).
- Substrate and habitat information derived from the BBS Field Guide and Watson, E.V., "British Mosses and Liverworts", CUP (1995).
- A discussion on the correlations and trends that this table suggests will be published in due course.