Lepidozia kirkii Steph.
Lepidozia kirkii Steph., Sp. Hepat. 3: 598. 1909.
Type: New Zealand, South and North Is., Krone, Beckett, Kirk (non vidi).
Lepidozia dentifolia Steph., Sp. Hepat. 3: 599. 1909, syn. fide Engel and Schuster (2001).
Type: New Zealand, Jacksons Track, Goebel (G!).
[Fig. 50: 1, oil-bodies, p. 268]
Plants ascending, rather flexuous, with ventrally secund branches, pale green, the shoots medium, to 2 cm wide, including branches. Branching mostly of Frullania type, regularly pinnate, the primary branches often becoming whip-like, flagelliform, microphyllous, and rooting in the substrate; secondary branches occasionally present; branch half-leaf ± symmetric to slightly asymmetric, broadly ovate, shallowly 2(3)-lobed to 0.3, irregularly toothed nearly to the base; first branch underleaf 4(5)-lobed, inserted on ventral to ventral-lateral side of branch and aligned with underleaves of branch. Ventral-intercalary branching rare and sporadic, leafy. Stems soft, flexuous, the cortical cells in 1 layer of thick-walled cells somewhat larger than the medullary cells; medullary cells thick-walled. Leaves rigid, concave, with incurved lobes, imbricate and completely hiding stem in dorsal view, 0.6–0.95 mm long at longest point, 0.8–1.4 mm wide at widest point, patent, the insertion distinctly incubous and slightly recurved at dorsal end; leaves distinctly asymmetric, unequally 4-lobed, the leaves divided to ca. 0.4–0.55 (median sinus), the distance from dorsal sinus base to insertion greater than that from ventral sinus to insertion. Lobes of differing shape, the dorsal pair of lobes acute, the ventral lobe narrowly acuminate to sublinear, the dorsal pair of lobes partially united, the lobes entire or sometimes with 1 to several short teeth, the dorsal lobe 9–14 cells wide at base, the lobes terminating in a single cell or a uniseriate row of 2–3 cells (the ventral often somewhat longer); cells of uniseriate row ± isodiametric to slightly longer than wide, thick-walled. Disc distinctly asymmetric, 22–27(30) cells high at dorsal sinus, 10–14 cells high at ventral sinus; dorsal margin broadly ampliate, the dorsal margin and the confluent margin of dorsal lobe irregularly (often doubly) dentate or serrate (erose) by teeth of 1 to several cells (the margin at times with a few weak teeth); ventral margin entire or sometimes with a process. Cells of disc-middle evenly thick-walled, ± isodiametric to longitudinally elongate, 14–22 µm wide × 18–30(36) µm long; median basal cells enlarged, in 1–2 rows, with irregularly thickened walls; surface smooth to indistinctly striate-papillose. Oil-bodies in upper sector of disc 1–3(5) per cell, hyaline, finely botryoidal, the spherules somewhat projecting beyond membrane, the oil-bodies spherical and 3–4 µm in diam. or irregularly ellipsoidal, sometimes slightly crescent-shaped, with acute tips and 3 × 5.5–7 µm; basal cells with 4–7(9) oil-bodies per cell, more strongly papillose, spherical and 4–5 µm in diam. or ca. 4 × 10 µm and similar in shape as midleaf oil-bodies. Chloroplasts very small. Underleaves spreading, symmetrically 4-fid to ca. 0.45–0.6 (median sinus), the lobes incurved, ± parallel, gradually attenuate, entire or with a tooth or spine, usually blunt at the tip or terminating in a single cell or short uniseriate row of 2–3(5) cells; disc 10–15 cells high at median sinus, disc margins somewhat reflexed, on each side with a lobe-like process distally, the underleaves then appearing 6-lobed.
Plants dioecious. Androecia on inconspicuous, short, determinate, tightly spicate, cernuous ventral-intercalary branches mostly from main shoot and occasionally from primary branches; bracts ventricose-cucullate, 2-lobed to ca. 0.3–0.4, the lobes acute; antheridial stalk biseriate. Gynoecia on abbreviated ventral-intercalary branches issuing from main stem; bracts of innermost series deeply concave, broadly ovate; apices with 4 short, ± regular lobes, the apical end of the marginal cells often diverging and forming a tooth, the lobes thus crenate-denticulate; lamina margin bordered by thin-walled cells of variable shape and orientation, the apical or free end of marginal cells variously divergent and forming a short projection or a tooth, the margin irregularly crenate-denticulate (+ slime papillae) to the base; bracteole similar in size and form. Perianth long and prominent, slenderly cylindrical-fusiform, slightly curved, terete below, obscurely trigonous above, distinctly and deeply 3-plicate toward mouth, the perianth gradually narrowing toward the strongly contracted, shallowly 3-lobed, somewhat contorted mouth, the lobes composed of cells that at the apical end are laterally free for varying lengths, the lobes thus crenate-denticulate.
Seta with 10–14 rows of outer cells surrounding an inner core of numerous much smaller cells. Capsule ellipsoidal to oblong, the wall 52–54 µm thick, of (4)5 layers; outer layer of cells with two-phase development, the longitudinal walls with sinuous, sheet-like thickenings and several large nodules alternating with walls that are devoid of thickenings (or are sporadically locally thickened), the transverse walls usually devoid of thickenings or sporadically have an isolated nodule; innermost layer of cells ± tiered, narrowly rectangular, semiannular bands common, close and numerous, sometimes incomplete.
Spores 14.4–15.8 µm in diam., the wall brown, with coarse, high, sharply defined, widely spaced papillae and simple or furcate vermiculate markings that sometimes coalesce (but do not delimit areolae). Elaters rigid, nontortuous, 9.6–11.5 µm wide, only slightly tapering toward tips, bispiral, the spirals 3.4–3.8 µm wide.
Distribution and Ecology : Endemic to New Zealand: Auckland Islands (15 m), Stewart Island (5–530[1280] m), South Island (90–1100 m), North Island (ca. 400–1280 m). Known from Fiordland, Westland, Western Nelson, Volcanic Plateau, Taranaki and Auckland (Coromandel Forest Park) EPs.
The species occurs in forests over a variety of substrates (rock, tree bark, rotten logs, epiphytic on Weinmannia racemosa) over a broad altitudinal range (ca. 30–1280 m). It is present in the upper limits of Nothofagus menziesii forests, as well as in N. solandri var. cliffortioides and W. racemosa – Metrosideros umbellata forests. In forested sites it occurs with Goebeliella cornigera, Lepicolea scolopendra, Lepidolaena taylorii and Bazzania adnexa. It also extends to the upper reaches of the penalpine zone (Kelly Ra., Arthur’s Pass Natl. Park, 1040–1110 m) where it forms tufts on rock. In the southern sectors of South Island it occurs at 100 m or lower. On Stewart Island it occupies a broad altitudinal range. At Belltopper Falls, Port Pegasus, the species may be found on vertical rock faces at ca. 5 m in an open, humid niche dominated by bedrock, with a forest margin of W. racemosa and Dracophyllum. On the Mt. Rocky summit area it occurred at 530 m deep in a shaded, protected niche under tussock cover in mosaic communities of dense heath-forming shrubs to 3 m tall, penalpine herbs, and dwarf heaths to 0.5 m tall that are dominated by stunted Leptospermum scoparium and Dracophyllum and a ground tier including Empodisma minus.
In the North Island it may be found in forests dominated by Nothofagus solandri var. cliffortioides (along a small stream, Blyth Track, Tongariro Natl. Park, ca. 1230 m) or in open forests dominated by Weinmannia racemosa, Kunzea ericoides and Agathis australis, and occurs over bare rock of cliff faces (near summit of Table Mtn., Coromandel Forest Park, 820 m). Also near the summit of “Little Moehau” (Coromandel Forest Park, ca. 840 m) on sheltered, vertical banks or on upper branches of stunted W. silvicola in a narrow valley system, truncated, sheltered and protected with stunted W. silvicola, Coprosma foetidissima and Corokia buddleioides.
Species found with Lepidozia kirkii are Acrobolbus concinnus, Acrochila biserialis, Acromastigum colensoanum, Bazzania adnexa, Breutelia elongata, Clandarium xiphophyllum, Cuspidatula monodon, Dendroligotrichum dendroides, Dicranoloma billardierei, Goebeliella cornigera, Heteroscyphus billardierei, H. menziesii, Jamesoniella kirkii, Kurzia hippuroides, Lepidozia obtusiloba, L. ulothrix, Paraschistochila tuloides, Pseudocyphellaria homeophylla and Schistochila monticola.
Comments : The dorsal margin of the leaf disc and the confluent margin of the dorsal lobe are typically coarsely and irregularly (often doubly) dentate or serrate, rather than armed with discrete spines (terminating in a uniseriate row of 2 or more cells) as in Lepidozia hirta (Fig. 44: 2, 4, 10). Presence of teeth, even when few in number, will distinguish the species from L. hirta. Lepidozia hirta also differs in the more deeply lobed underleaves with the lobes often variously and irregularly dissected. The species differs from L. serrulata by the acute dorsal pair of leaf lobes, each with a uniseriate row of 2–3 cells and the 1-pinnate branching.
