Lescuraea stenophylla (Renauld & Cardot) Kindberg

Plants small, in thin open to thick mats, green or yellow-green. Stems with branches slender, not or rarely julaceous, apices straight to rarely curving up; central strand present; paraphyllia many, filamentous to foliose, not branched. Leaves appressed to somewhat erect when dry, erect-spreading when moist, glossy, ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, symmetric, not or rarely falcate except at apices, 0.9-2 mm; margins recurved to just before acumen; apex gradually and slenderly long-acuminate, hair-point absent; costa percurrent, green to yellow-green, not sinuate; alar cells transversely elongate to quadrate, region small; medial laminal cells elongate-rhomboidal to fusiform or somewhat vermicular, to 30µm, 2-3(-4):1, pellucid, strongly papillose over lumen, papillae usually off-centered to distal edge, rarely some cells prorate, walls firm to incrassate, not pitted; juxtacostal cells somewhat shorter than more distal cells, walls not pitted. Capsule erect, symmetric, 1-3 mm; endostome basal membrane 1/4 exostome length, segments shorter than exostome, cilia absent or rudimentary. Spores 16-20 µm.

Capsules mature spring-summer (May-Aug). Twigs and branches of shrubs or small trees, tree bases of Acer or Alnus, along streams; moderate to high elevations (500-2100 m); Alta., B.C., Nfld. and Labr., N.S., Que.; Alaska, Calif., Idaho, Mont., Oreg., Utah, Wash.; w Eurasia.

Pseudoleskea stenophylla is distinguished by small plants growing on bark and twigs of shrubs and trees, leaves with a long, slender acumen half the leaf length, and elongate laminal cells with papillae over the lumen but usually off-centered.