Lepicoleaceae R.M.Schust.
Type: Lepicolea Dumort.
Plants isophyllous or nearly so, stiff, erect or suberect, at times pendent, pale green to greyish green to golden brown; shoots large, to 10–15 cm long. Branching rather regularly 1-pinnate, the branches predominantly of Frullania type, typically determinate in length, drooping and curved toward shoot base, tapering, becoming microphyllous and flagelliform, at times long and whip-like, often cernuous; lateral-intercalary branches less frequent. Stems rigid, smooth in ours but paraphyllose in some nonregional species, in cross section with cortex in (1)2–3 or more layers of very thick-walled cells grading into the larger, thick-walled medullary cells. Rhizoids colorless, sparing, at bases of microphyllous underleaves and leaves of flagelliform sectors of branches, rarely at bases of underleaves on main shoot. Leaves with insertion weakly incubous, symmetric to slightly asymmetric, bisbifid, the median sinus descending to 0.45–0.75 or a little more; lobes typically narrow and long-attenuate, frequently with hyaline and/or setaceous tips; lamina (and sometimes lobe) margins often dentate to ciliate-laciniate. Cells with thick walls and massive, ± confluent trigones; cells in median sector of lamina (and, less conspicuously, those in basal half of lobes) sometimes ± elongate and forming a weakly to distinctly defined vitta; surface striate-papillose or striolate. Oil-bodies (fide Schuster, 2000a) homogeneous, 2–5 up to 5–10 per cell. Asexual reproduction lacking. Underleaves transversely inserted, with shape, size and form much like the leaves. Asexual reproduction by fragmenting lobe apices in some taxa, exceptionally via regeneration.
Plants dioecious (in our species) or rarely monoecious. Androecia becoming intercalary on leading shoots, only weakly differentiated from vegetative sectors. ♂ Bracts usually bisbifid, ventricose at base; bracteoles sometimes with antheridia, the bracteoles then similar in form to bracts; antheridia 1–2 per bract (and bracteole), the stalk short, biseriate. Gynoecia terminal on main shoot or on rather short to long branches, with bracts and bracteoles basically similar to leaves and underleaves, the innermost becoming fragmented as scales on the coelocaule. Sporophyte protected by an erect, clavate, thick-walled coelocaule, the surface with variably modified bracts, bracteoles and sometimes also paraphyllia lending a bristly and “head-like” appearance; free calyptra absent.
Seta massive, short, barely elevating the capsule beyond the coelocaule. Capsule spherical, ca. 1 mm in diam., opening by 4 slits, the wall 5–7-layered, the outer layer of cells with two-phase ontogeny, the well-developed nodules restricted to the irregularly oriented secondary walls; innermost layer of cells with nodular thickenings, the thickenings tending to coalesce and form weak, irregular, continuous sheets of material, with semiannular bands rare or lacking.
Spores aculeate to tuberculate, ca. 2–4× elater diam. Elaters rather short, tortuous, bispiral.
The genus has about 10 species and is widely distributed within south-temperate–circum-Pacific areas. Lepicolea ochroleuca (Spreng.) Spruce is an amphi-Atlantic species, occurring in South Africa, Tristan da Cunha, Falkland Islands, southern South America, Juan Fernandez Islands, northern Andes; also in Central America and Mexico. Two species occur in southern South America in addition to L. ochroleuca; these are L. rigida (De Not.) E.B.Scott and L. magellanica (Gola) Solari. Two species are found in New Zealand.
