Phascum Cuspidatum Moss
Habit and habitat.-In loose yellow-green tufts in old fields. Name.-The specific name cuspidatum, pointed, refers to the apex of the leaves.
Plants (gametophyte).-Stems simple or branched. 1/10 to 5/10 of an inch high, often bushy with numerous fertile sterns, dividing from the base or branching above, occasionally whip-like.
Leaves.-Small and few below, much larger and crowded above, broadly lance-like, twisted when dry: apex awl-like; margins recurved, entire; vein thick and extending beyond the apex; basal cells large, clear; upper cells small, green, with tiny projecting points.
Habit of flowering.-Male and female flowers on the same plant (monoicous) ; male flowers sessile in the axils of the upper leaves.
Veil (calyptra).-Split on one side.
Spore-case.-One or several on a plant, erect or nodding, spherical with a sharp point at the top, 1/20 of an inch in diameter.
Pedicel.-Short and curved, immersed or slightly emergent.
Spores.-Brown, rough, mature in March and April.
Distribution.-North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa.