Plants in soft, dense tufts, cushions or sods, yellow-to dark green distally, pale brown proximally, or sordid brown throughout, occasionally with a red tinge in young leaves. Stems 0.5-7(-10) cm, often sparingly branched by subfloral innovations, smooth or occasionally scabrous-papillose; transverse section round, rounded-pentagonal, or triangular, hyalodermis usually absent, sclerodermis present, central strand absent [present]; moderately radiculose proximally, occasionally to the apex; axillary hairs of around 8 cells, the basal 1-2 cells brownish or occasionally all cells hyaline. Leaves appressed to appressed-incurved and weakly contorted when dry, weakly to strongly spreading-recurved when moist; linear-to oblong-lanceolate, adaxial surface sharply keeled or canaliculate, 0.5-2.8(-3) mm; base scarcely differentiated to ovate or rectangular, sometimes semi-sheathing proximal to a reflexed distal lamina; distal margins narrowly recurved along 1 or both sides, or margins of expanded base broadly recurved, all margins papillose-denticulate to smooth or scalloped-denticulate, occasionally 2-stratose distally in small to extensive patches, apex sharply to bluntly acute, sometimes apiculate with a clear cell, acuminate-mucronate, or rarely obtuse to rounded; costa ending 2-6 cells before the apex or percurrent to excurrent as a stout mucro, costal adaxial cells epapillose, in 4-5 rows, abaxial cells elongate, 3:1, papillose or smooth, transverse section semi-circular or concave adaxially, adaxial costal epidermis absent, adaxial stereid band present but absent in depauperate plants, guide cells 2-4(-6) in one layer, hydroid strand absent, abaxial stereid band well developed, abaxial epidermis absent or weakly differentiated; basal cells differentiated, typically firm to occasionally lax medially, rectangular, 2-4:1, even or often strongly irregularly porose, with narrower rectangular cells extending into a slender, often fragile decurrency; distal laminal cells typically heterogeneous, larger along the costa grading to distinctly smaller on the margins, irregularly subquadrate to short-rectangular to porose throughout, 8-12 µm wide, 1-2(-3):1, cell walls thin to typically incrassate, flat to slightly convex in section, papillae simple and sharp to 2-fid, 1-3 or more per lumen, centered to scattered, occasionally absent, lumina clear to pellucid. Specialized asexual reproduction none. Sexual condition dioicous; perigonia gemmate, terminal; perichaetia terminal, leaves little different from the cauline, somewhat longer, slightly sheathing. Seta yellow when young, red-brown with age, 0.5-1 cm, twisted clockwise. Capsule yellow to red-brown, variably globose, ovoid, obovoid, or subcylindric, ca. 0.5-1 mm; operculum inconstantly systylius, obliquely conic-rostrate, 0.2-1 mm; peristome absent. Calyptra cucullate, smooth. Spores ca. 17 µm, brownish, finely papillose. KOH laminal color reaction yellow.
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