Gymnostomum bewsii Sim

Plants slender, frequently very tall, forming tufts or dense cushions, dark green to light or yellowish green above, light brown below; terricolous or saxicolous. Stems erect, 5-20 mm tall, frequently branching; in section round to oval, central strand absent, inner cortical cells lax, outer cortical cells in 1-3 rows, somewhat smaller, incrassate, reddish; axillary hairs 5-10 cells long, hyaline throughout. Leaves incurved, slightly twisted dry, widespreading wet; linear to linear-lanceolate, 1-2 mm long; broadly concave ventrally, bistratose above base; apex acute; base scarcely differentiated, oblong to oval, erect-appressed wet; margins plane, entire or infrequently denticulate at shoulders. Costa strong, percurrent or just excurrent; ventral superficial cells quadrate to short-rectangular, weakly papillose, dorsal superficial cells rectangular, smooth; in section elliptical to wedge-shaped, guide cells 4-6, large, ventral stereid band 1-2 cells thick, ventral surface cells incrassate, dorsal stereid band 2-3 cells thick, dorsal surface cells with strongly thickened outer walls, lumen semicircular. Upper laminal cells quadrate, frequently transversely rectangular at margins, incrassate, papillae low, blunt, simple, 2-4 over lumen; basal cells moderately differentiated, bulging, quadrate to short-rectangular, hyaline, smooth, thin-walled. Dioicous. Perichaetia terminal, leaves lanceolate to linear, 1.5 mm long, generally dentate to denticulate at shoulders. Seta 2.5-3.0 mm long, yellowish; capsule very shortly cylindrical, 1.0-1.2 mm long, reddish yellow; peristome absent; operculum long-rostrate, 0.8 mm long, cells not twisted; spores round, 12-17 µm, papillose, brownish.