Status: Native
Synonyms:
Limprichtia cossonii (Schimp.) L.E. Anderson, H.A. Crum & W.R. Buck
Drepanocladus intermedius (Lindb.) Warnst.
Drepanocladus revolvens (Sw.) Warnst. var. intermedius (Lindb.) Grout
Limprichtia intermedia (Lindb.) Loeske
Scorpidium cossonii has strongly falcate deeply red-brown leaves on older shoots, while the younger growth is
bright green and may not be falcate at all. In the field, it is a bit confusing and looks like two species growing closely together. The costa reaches past midleaf. The leaf margins are entire except for an occasional leaf with inconspicuous
small teeth at the apex. There are inflated alar cells. Except for the color, the leaf morphology is very similar to Drepanocladus aduncus, which is much more common in New Mexico. The major morphological difference requires stem cross sections and a microscope to see-- S. cossonii has a stem hyalodermis (clear, thin walled cells surrounding the stem), while D. aduncus does not have a stem hyalodermis. The cell ends of S. cossonii are not long tapered as they are in another species of the genus. We found S. cossonii partly submerged in an upper elevation fen in spruce forest.
Please click on an image for a larger file.
Scorpidium cossonii, photo Russ Kleinman, Karen Blisard, Stacey Anderson & Bayard "Mo" Ewing, Rio Arriba Cty., Carson National Forest, CD trail north of Canjilon Lakes, June 16, 2021
Scorpidium cossonii, dry appearance with older (brownish) and newer (greenish) shoots, photo Russ Kleinman, Karen Blisard, Stacey Anderson & Bayard "Mo" Ewing, Rio Arriba Cty., Carson National Forest, CD trail north of Canjilon Lakes, June 16, 2021
Scorpidium cossonii, photomicrograph of mature shoot, photo Russ Kleinman, Karen Blisard, Stacey Anderson & Bayard "Mo" Ewing, Rio Arriba Cty., Carson National Forest, CD trail north of Canjilon Lakes, June 16, 2021
Scorpidium cossonii, photomicrograph of leaf, photo Russ Kleinman, Karen Blisard, Stacey Anderson & Bayard "Mo" Ewing, Rio Arriba Cty., Carson National Forest, CD trail north of Canjilon Lakes, June 16, 2021
Scorpidium cossonii, photomicrograph of leaf, photo Russ Kleinman, Karen Blisard, Stacey Anderson & Bayard "Mo" Ewing, Rio Arriba Cty., Carson National Forest, CD trail north of Canjilon Lakes, June 16, 2021
Scorpidium cossonii, photomicrograph of cross section of stem with hyalodermis, photo Russ Kleinman, Karen Blisard, Stacey Anderson & Bayard "Mo" Ewing, Rio Arriba Cty., Carson National Forest, CD trail north of Canjilon Lakes, June 16, 2021
Scorpidium cossonii, photomicrograph of cross section of stem with hyalodermis, photo Russ Kleinman, Karen Blisard, Stacey Anderson & Bayard "Mo" Ewing, Rio Arriba Cty., Carson National Forest, CD trail north of Canjilon Lakes, June 16, 2021
Scorpidium cossonii, photomicrograph of leaf base with short rounded cell ends, photo Russ Kleinman, Karen Blisard, Stacey Anderson & Bayard "Mo" Ewing, Rio Arriba Cty., Carson National Forest, CD trail north of Canjilon Lakes, June 16, 2021
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