Plants minute, with upright branches arising from pale, fleshy, subterranean, aphyllous stems. Leaves crowded distally, broadly concave, ovate, elliptic to obovate costa single or absent; cell walls of lamina often thickened at corners. Sexual condition paroicous [synoicous, or occasionally dioicous]. Seta short to moderately elongate. Capsule globose or hemispheric, commonly spongy or wrinkled, immersed or exserted, gymnostomous or cleistocarpous. Calyptra very small, conic [mitrate], fugacious.