Telaranea Schiffn.
Telaranea Spruce ex Schiffn. in Engl. & Prantl, Nat. Pflanzenfam. 1(3,1): 103. 1893, nom. cons.
Telaranea Spruce, Trans. & Proc. Bot. Soc. Edinburgh 15: 358, 360, 365. 1885, nom. inval. in syn.
Lepidozia subg. Telaranea (Spruce ex Schiffn.) Müll.Frib. in Rabenhorst, Krypt.-Fl. Deutschland 6(2): 276. 1914.
Arachniopsis Spruce, Cephalozia 84. 1882, nom. rejic.
Neolepidozia Fulford & J.Taylor, Brittonia 11: 81. 1959.
Acrolepidozia R.M.Schust., J. Hattori Bot. Lab. 26: 254. 1963.
Type: Lepidozia chaetophylla Spruce
Plants soft-textured and often lax, to ± stiff and wiry, to thread-like and minutely prickly, mostly prostrate or creeping, occasionally ascending to suberect, pale, whitish or yellowish to pure green, rarely brownish yellow to rust-brown, often nitid, at times glaucous and water-repellent. Branching 1(2)-pinnate, usually rather regularly so, the branches predominantly of Frullania type, rarely to frequently becoming flagelliform, rarely absent; Microlepidozia -type and Acromastigum -type branches in some species; ventral-intercalary branches present, leafy or stoloniform, or absent; lateral-intercalary branches rarely present. Stems with 9–18 rows of cortical cells (as few as 4 in some species of sect. Tenuifoliae), mostly thin-walled, forming a conspicuous hyaloderm (up to 30 rows of weakly differentiated cells in sect. Tricholepidozia); medullary cells numerous (few in some species of sect. Tenuifoliae). Rhizoids from basal and/or distal cells of underleaf. Leaves incubously inserted and oriented, varying to transversely inserted or almost longitudinal in some species, rarely weakly succubous, highly variable in form, ± symmetrically lobed, in most species 4-lobed or 4–6-lobed, but sometimes 2–3-lobed, occasionally simple or 12-lobed (sect. Tricholepidozia), the leaves shallowly to deeply divided. Lobes ranging from acute, caudate, acuminate to ciliiform, typically uniseriate for much of their length, to uniseriate almost or quite to the base. Disc (when present) variable, from 2 cells high (consisting of a single tier of cells along the insertion, plus the basal cells of the lobes) to as many as 6(14) cells high, in some species the “disc” consisting of the connate basal cells of the lobes; margins normally entire (very rarely denticulate by projecting septa). Cells of disc typically in regular rows and tiers, the number of cell rows equal to twice the number of lobes, often large, usually leptodermous, occasionally firm- to evenly thick-walled, often rather turgid, in a few species collapsing on drying; surface mostly smooth, in some species variously papillose, finely scabrous (with minute, sharp prickles), or with a uniform glaucous coating. Oil-bodies hyaline or greyish, the surface variable, ± homogeneous in some species, coarsely granular in other species, some species coarsely papillose, (4)5–9(12) per cell. Underleaves small and inconspicuous to large and similar to leaves in form but with fewer and often shorter lobes; margins entire. Asexual reproduction rare, by tubers or caducous and fragmenting leaf lobes in a few species.
Dioecious, less commonly autoecious. Androecia either terminal on short to moderately long Frullania- type branches or, more often, on short, spicate ventral-intercalary branches from leading shoots; bracts typically monandrous, the antheridial stalk 1- or 2-seriate; bracteolar antheridia lacking. Gynoecia on short ventral-intercalary branches lacking normal vegetative leaves. Bracts and bracteoles similar, crenulate to dentate, lobulate to shallowly to deeply lobed. Perianth large for plant size, typically assurgent, ovoid to fusiform to cylindrical, terete below, usually bluntly trigonous to shallowly to deeply plicate above (rarely eplicate), gradually or abruptly narrowed to the mouth; perianth mouth variable, denticulate to shallowly lobulate to lobulate-ciliate to subfimbriate; perianth 2–4(5)-stratose in basal portion, the median portion (1)2(3)-stratose.
Seta with outer layer of 8 cells or exceptionally as few as 4, the inner cells 15–24(34) to 12 or fewer, rarely as few as 6 or 4. Capsule short- or exceptionally long-ellipsoidal, the wall typically 3-stratose, less often 2-, 4-, or 5-stratose; outer layer of cells in tiers, rectangular, with two-phase development, the longitudinal walls with nodule-like thickenings alternating with primary walls devoid of thickenings; innermost cells usually with semiannular bands, the bands complete, less often incomplete, or bands weakly developed or lacking, the radial walls with nodular thickenings and short spine-like extensions onto the exposed tangential wall.
Spores (SEM) reticulate-areolate, with enclosed polygonal areolae bounded by a network of low ridges, or papillose-vermiculate, with short discontinuous ridges formed by coalesced papillae, or the surface irregularly roughened. Elaters little tapered, typically bispiral to tips.
Key to Species
Telaranea with 98 species according to Engel and Merrill (2004) is the third largest genus of Lepidoziaceae, after Bazzania and Lepidozia. Engel and Merrill (2004) recognized two subgenera, subg. Acrolepidozia and subg. Telaranea, and seven sections within subg. Telaranea, sect. Neolepidozia (Fulford & J.Taylor) J.J.Engel & Merril l, sect. Cancellatae J.J.Engel & Merril l, sect. Ceraceae J.J.Engel & Merril l, sect. Tricholepidozia (R.M.Schust.) J.J.Engel & Merril l, sect. Transversae J.J.Engel & Merril l, sect. Telaranea and sect. Tenuifoliae (R.M.Schust.) J.J.Engel & Merril l. Representatives of all subgenera and sections occur within our area; 25 species occur in New Zealand. The phylogenetic analysis in Engel and Merrill (2004) indicated that Kurzia, as defined by the presence of Microlepidozia -type branching, is polyphyletic, and the following species and variety previously assigned to Kurzia were transferr sect. Telaranea : K. quadriseta, K. quadriseta var. trilobata, K. fragilifolia and K. quinquespina.
Taxa with 4-lobed leaves may be confused with those of Lepidozia. The experienced student, however, will soon come to separate the two genera on the basis of surface texture (Telaranea is often or usually somewhat to strongly nitid; Lepidozia species are all dull-textured) and degree of firmness (Telaranea species, even the larger, are soft-textured, more gracile, sometimes silky, sometimes delicate; cells in at least the lobes often collapse in drying). Lepidozia species are firm-textured; their cells never collapse in drying.
The genus includes a diversity of elegant and in many cases beautiful plants. The species of Telaranea seem, at first glance, to belong to wholly different genera, and indeed, until recent decades were assigned partly to Lepidozia, partly to Neolepidozia, and only in small part to Telaranea s. str. (see Engel and Merrill, 2004).
References: Engel and Merrill (2004); Hodgson (1956; sub Lepidozia); Schuster (2000a).
