K. sylvatica sterile branches, photographed at 20x. Main branches are about 150mm in diameter.
Note the terete branches produced as a result of three equal rows of leaves.
Kurzia makinoana (Steph.) Grolle
Kurzia,a small leafy liverwort in the family Lepidoziaceae, has three more or less equal rows of leaves. The two or three-lobed leaves are two or three cells across at the base of each lobe. Kurzia makinoana is known only from the Pacific Rim, and in our region is very rare and restricted to a few scattered localities with strong oceanic influence. Kurzia in the Pacific Northwest is known from a single locality in California, scattered stations in Washington, and is reported in Oregon as well (D.H.Wagner, personal communication; USDA Forest Service et al., 2000). The closely related K. sylvatica, a plant known primarily from Eastern North America, may also occur in our area. Further critical study is needed to clearly distinguish the two species. The following photographs are of K. sylvatica from Tennessee.
The only plant likely to be mistaken for Kurzia in the Pacific Northwest is Blepharostoma, but that plant is considerably larger, and has leaf lobes that are completely uniseriate.
K.
sylvatica sterile branches, photographed at 20x. Main branches are
about 150mm
in diameter.
Note the terete branches produced as a result of three equal rows of leaves.
Sterile
branches at 100X
Branch with side shoots, photographed at 140x with epi-illumination.
Main
branch, photographed at 200x with side lighting and phase contrast.
Note
that the lobes are two cells across at the base.
References
USDA Forest Service & USDI Bureau of Land Management 2000. FSEIS for amendment to the survey & manage, protection buffer, and other mitigation measures standards and guidelines. Regional Ecosystem Office, Portland.
Copyright © 1999 Steven L. Jessup, Southern Oregon University