Drepanolejeunea appalachiana R.M. Schuster

Locations ofDrepanolejeunea appalachiana R.M. Schuster in Virginia

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Detail

Family
Lejeuneaceae
Botanical Name
Drepanolejeunea appalachiana R.M. Schuster
Common Name
Appalachian Threadwort
Synonym(s)
Flora of Virginia Name/Status
Not applicable
Comments
Rediscovered in Virginia in 2016, in the Dan River gorge, Patrick County. Two other populations were discovered along Stock Creek and Cove Creek (Scott County) in 2021. This minute liverwort, a narrow Southern Appalachian endemic, is otherwise attributed to Virginia by Hicks (1997) and R.M. Schuster (The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America East of the Hundredth Meridian: Vol. 4, 1980). It was first reported (as Drepanolejeunea bidens) by Sharp in 1944 (The Bryologist 47:35) from Big Cascades near Mountain Lake, Giles Co. The specimen, collected by Sharp and P.M. Patterson, resides in the Herbarium of the Mountain Lake Biological Station near the collection site. The species has not been seen in the vicinity since then.
Habitat
Giles County: reported by Sharp (1944) as "Rare; base of tree above Big Cascades", along Little Stony Creek near Mountain Lake. Sharp's specimen housed at the Mountain Lake Biological Station herbarium states the microhabitat specifically as "Bark of Kalmia". Patrick County: on western edge of Dan River gorge, growing on bark of several Rhododendron maximum along Barnard Creek. Two additional colonies were found along Cove and Scott Creeks, Scott County in July 2021, growing on bark of several species of shrubs and trees.
Native Status
Native

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