Plants small, scattered or loosely caespitose, light green to yellow-green, brownish below, stem and leaves covered with glaucous bloom; saxicolous or corticolous. Stems 10-40 mm tall, frequently branched, especially above, larger plants ± dendroid, tomentum sparse on lower stem, red-brown; in section round, central strand large, inner cortical cells in 3-4 rows, large, thin-walled, outer cortical cells in 2-3 rows, incrassate, yellowish-brown, epidermal cells quickly eroded, stem weakly fluted. Leaves appressed to spreading, weakly contorted dry, spreading wet; ovate to lanceolate, 0.5-1.0 mm long; apex acute to acuminate; margins plane to reflexed, crenulate by projecting leaf cell papillae. Costa short-excurrent as brownish awn, ventral and dorsal superficial cells long-rectangular, prorate; in section bulging dorsally, guide cells 2, incrassate, ventral cells in single row, smaller than guide cells, dorsal substereid band 2-3 cells thick, dorsal surface cells similar to ventral cells. Laminal cells quadrate to hexagonal, rectangular or rhomboidal, mostly 1-2:1, thin-walled, papillose with one large, spinose papilla over lumen of either dorsal or ventral surface; basal cells not differentiated. Dioicous. Perigonia terminal, discoid; leaves with broadly obovate clasping base, abruptly constricted to a squarrose-reflexed acumen; costa percurrent to short-excurrent. Perichaetia terminal, quickly overgrown by subperichaetial innovations; leaves oblong to elliptical, constricted to a long, narrow acumen, 2.2-2.5 mm long; costa long-excurrent. Seta 5-7 mm long, reddish yellow; capsule inclined, asymmetrical, urn ovoid, 2 mm long, striate wet or dry, red-brown; exothecial cells rectangular to rhomboidal, thin-walled, 2-4 rows of transversely rectangular cells at mouth, reddish; stomata present at base of urn, phaneropore; peristome double, exostome teeth narrowly triangular, 0.35 mm high, weakly papillose, red-yellow, endostome irregularly cleft and perforated, segments as long as teeth, cilia absent, smooth, yellowish; operculum convex; calyptra not seen; spores rounded, 27-28 µm, papillose, brownish.
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