Syrrhopodon muelleri Sande Lacoste 1870

The thin straw-colored tufts of the “stemless” plants of S. muelleri, with leaves erect and straight wet and dry, are unmistakable, even in the field. Although very common over much of its distributed range, S. muelleri is rare in China.

Plants small, less than 1 cm high, yellow, gregarious or in thin colonies. Stems very short, with stemless appearance; rhizoids brownish red, inconspicuous. Leaves erect and straight wet and dry, sometimes twisted, linear above scarcely broader base, to 10 mm long, axillary hairs inconspicuous; costa sometimes excurrent as a short smooth arista; cells of upper laminae very thick-walled, isodiametric, nearly smooth to finely papillose with small, low papillae abaxially and adaxially; margins of upper laminae thickened by elongate hyaline cells, but these often accompanied by and obscured by oblong green cells, margins entire all around except sometimes erose or denticulate at leaf tips; cancellinae acute or narrowly rounded distally. Gemmae infrequent, adaxial on leaf tips. Sporophytes not seen.

Distribution: China, widespread from Sri Lanka eastward through Malaysia, Australia, and Oceania including Hawaii.

Habitat: very rare, but locally common in some sites; on tree trunks and bases and roots in forests at moderate elevations, 420–980 m.