An aid to dryland moss identification!

 

My species montages below include dryland mosses from Utah and California which show dramatic changes in morphology dry vs. wet. The leaves of many species are often 1 cell thick and thus their cells illuminate beautifully under the compound microscope revealing diverse textures and colors which are unique to each species.

 

I photographed specimens at three scales of magnification on the path towards species identification, a visually captivating but time-intensive process ranging from 2 - 8 hrs per sample.

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Three scales of magnification

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• iPhone (1x)

• Dissecting microscope (2 - 40x)

• Compound microscope (10x - 400x).

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Species Profiles

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1. Barbula convoluta

2. Claopodium whippleanum

3. Didymodon australasiaea

4. Didymodon tophaceus

5. Grimmia laevigata

6. Fissidens crispus

7. Pseudocrossdium crinitum

8. Rosulabryum capillare

9. Syntrichia princeps

10. Tortula inermis