Plants small to medium-sized, in open to dense turfs, green, yellow-green, red-green, or red. Stems 0.5-3(-5) cm, evenly foliate, julaceous or not, often branching; rhizoids few, micronemata present at base of stem, occasionally in clusters along stem, macronemata axillary. Leaves strongly imbricate when dry, erect when moist, ovate to lanceolate or rarely lingulate or triangular, flat or concave, 1-3 mm; base rarely decurrent; margins plane to strongly revolute, entire to serrulate distally, 1-stratose, limbidium absent or occasionally present; apex obtuse to acuminate; costa percurrent to short-excurrent with awn present, guide cells usually in 1 layer; alar cells not differentiated; laminal areolation heterogeneous; proximal laminal cells abruptly quadrate or rectangular, , 1-2(-3):1; medial and distal cells vermicular to rhomboidal or hexagonal, usually 3-6(-8):1, walls thin to incrassate, rarely porose. Specialized asexual reproduction by rhizoidal tubers or absent. Sexual condition dioicous; perigonia and perichaetia terminal; perigonial and perichaetial leaves not much differentiated, outer perichaetial leaves larger, inner leaves smaller than leaves of innovations. Seta usually single, ± straight or somewhat flexuose. Capsule inclined or nutant, pyriform to clavate, 2-6 mm; hypophysis slender, ; operculum convex, apiculate; peristome double; exostome yellowish, teeth well developed, lanceolate; endostome not adherent to exostome, basal membrane high, segments well developed, with ovate perforations, cilia long, appendiculate or sometimes nodose. Spores shed singly, 10-18(-20) µm, smooth to papillose, yellowish or yellow-brown.
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