Plants of medium size, loosely caespitose, yellow-green, brownish below; terricolous. Stems 10-20 mm high, with sparse, reddish tomentum below; in section round, central strand large, inner cortical cells in 3-4 rows, thin-walled, outer cortical cells in 2 rows, smaller, thickened, reddish. Leaves weakly contorted dry, erect-spreading wet; ovate-lanceolate to elliptical, subulate, 4-6 mm long; apex occasionally with hyaline tip; base scarcely differentiated; margins entire, inrolled above. Costa 3/5 of width of leaf base, percurrent or short-excurrent, yellow to hyaline; in proximal section guide cells c. 20, ventral cells large, thin-walled or occasionally incrassate, dorsal cells undifferentiated, incrassate or strongly differentiated medianally, with small groups of stereids separated by larger, incrassate cells, laterally without stereid groups, all cells large, forming multistratose area 1-8 cells wide, dorsal surface smooth to rough; in distal section costa frequently occupying entire leaf, ventral cells smaller, incrassate, completely covering guide cells, dorsal cells frequently undifferentiated, stereids or substereids, dorsal surface rough or with single-celled projections. Upper laminal cells quadrate to rectangular or elongate, sinuo-late, incrassate; basal cells frequently reaching higher along margins than costa, narrowly rectangular, thin-walled; alar cells scarcely differentiated, occasionally reddish. Sporophyte not known in Southern Africa.
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