Distichophyllum crispulum (Hook.f. & Wilson) Mitt.

Plants small, soft, yellow-green, variably iridescent when dry, forming loose to compact layered mats. Stems prostrate to weakly ascendant, weakly to moderately and irregularly branched, pale red-brown in older portions, to 15 mm or more, in cross-section as per genus. Shoots c. 3 mm wide. Leaves inserted in 6–8 rows, complanate, slightly asymmetric (especially at insertion), strongly or weakly crisped when dry, broadly elliptic from a narrowed insertion, apiculate, plane, weakly or stoutly bordered, entire, (0.8–)1.0–2.3 × 0.7–1.1 mm; upper laminal cells beyond costa firm-walled, slightly thickened at corners, ± hexagonal, compact, becoming larger and laxer towards the base; juxtacostal cells not markedly differentiated; border of elongate cells well-differentiated, stout or delicate, concolorous. Costa concolorous, 20–30 µm wide at mid leaf, widening further at extreme base, unbranched or weakly spurred, extending ½ –¾ the leaf length.

Autoicous or dioicous. Perichaetial leaves ovate-acuminate, not or weakly bordered, ecostate. Perigonia gemmiform, scattered on stems, with cuspidate, ecostate, scarcely bordered bracts, with 1–3 antheridia and lacking paraphyses. Setae 3–11 mm, smooth, weakly sinistrorse, yellow- to red-brown; capsules horizontal to ± pendent, oblong-cylindric from a tapered neck, c. 0.7–1.0 mm, constricted below the mouth when dry, pale red-brown; exothecial cells oblong and strongly collenchymatous; annulus not seen; operculum long rostrate, c. 0.5–0.6 mm. Exostome teeth c. 240–270 µm; endostome segments uniseriate, c. 150 µm, neither keeled nor perforate. Calyptra c. 1.0 mm, hairy above. Spores 10–16 µm, green, smooth.

Distichophyllum crispulum is treated here as including one typical (autonymic) and one atypical variety.