Pseudolepicoleaceae Fulford & J.Taylor
Pseudolepicoleaceae Fulford & J.Taylor, Nova Hedwigia 1: 411. 1960.
Blepharostomataceae Müll.Frib., Svensk Bot. Tidskr. 42(1): 14. 1948, nom. inval.; R.M.Schust., Amer. Midl. Nat. 49: 302. 1953, nom. inval.; Müll.Frib. in Rabenhorst, Krypt.-Fl. Deutschland, ed. 3. 6: 590. 1954, nom. inval.; S.W.Arnell, Illus. Moss Fl. Fennoscandia 1: 47. 1956, nom. inval.
Herzogiariaceae Fulford, Nova Hedwigia 1: 397. 1960.
Chaetocoleaceae Fulford, Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 11: 62. 1963.
Type: Pseudolepicolea Fulford & J.Taylor
Plants isophyllous to moderately anisophyllous, erect to procumbent, green to brown to fuscous, but reddish pigmentation lacking; plants small to robust. Branching sparing, irregular, commonly of Frullania and ventral-intercalary types, rarely of Microlepidozia, Acromastigum, or lateral-intercalary types. Stems with surface lacking paraphyllia, in cross section with cortex typically poorly differentiated, of thin-walled or moderately thick-walled cells ± similar to the medullary cells or a little smaller. Rhizoids often only sparingly developed, from stem at underleaf bases or from cells of underleaf. Leaves with insertion transverse to succubous (at times weakly incubous in Isophyllaria), often stiffly spreading from stem, not ventrally secund, symmetric to rather asymmetric (and with dorsal lobe[s] smaller), typically quadrifid (at times bisbifid, sporadically 3-lobed, bifid in Isophyllaria), often with marginal teeth or cilia, at least in the vicinity of gynoecia. Cells normally ± rectangular and moderately to distinctly longer than wide, often ± in tiers, not forming a vitta, typically thin- or firm-walled and lacking trigones (except Archeophylla, where trigones are nodulose); surface usually striate-papillose. Oil-bodies finely granular to papillose. Underleaves similar to leaves but always symmetrical. Asexual reproduction lacking (except Blepharostoma, with 1-celled gemmae from leaf lobe tips and Chaetocolea, with fragmentation of teeth and lobes of leaves).
Dioecious (except in some species of Blepharostoma and Lophochaete). Androecia on leading leafy shoots, rarely on ± abbreviated lateral branches, becoming intercalary; bracts often leaf-like but somewhat to strongly pouched at base and commonly less deeply lobed, usually with 1–2 antheridia; antheridial stalk 2-seriate (uniseriate in Blepharostoma); bracteoles without antheridia. Gynoecia on leading leafy shoots; bracts and bracteoles like the leaves and underleaves but typically larger and less deeply lobed. Perianth present, 3–6-plicate, the mouth wide (contracted in Archeophylla); perianth distinct and well developed, the mouth ciliate or dentate; coelocaule-precursor lacking (Archeophylla) or present; calyptra well developed but a shoot-calyptra at times somewhat elaborated.
Seta of numerous cells, with 12–20 rows of outer cells surrounding an internal core of cells ± similar in size (8+4 rows in Blepharostoma). Capsule ovoid or ellipsoidal, the wall 3–5-layered (2-layered in Blepharostoma and Lophochaete); epidermal cells with or (some Temnoma) without radial (nodular) thickenings; inner cells with conspicuous radial (nodular) or semiannular bands. Spores small, 1–2× the elaters in diam., finely granular or papillose or vermiculate.
We are circumscribing the Pseudolepicoleaceae to include three subfamilies. Subfamily Blepharostomatoideae Grolle has one genus, Blepharostoma (Dumort.) Dumort., a basically Holoarctic genus with three species. One species, B. trichophyllum (L.) Dumort., is circum north-temperate–subarctic–Arctic, but extends southward in three major areas: to Java and New Guinea; to montane–alpine regions of Africa (the only member of the family to occur in Africa); and to Central America and the Andes. Subfamily Chaetocoleoideae R.M.Schust., with the monotypic genus Chaetocolea Spruce, occurs at high elevations in the northern Andes.
Subfamily Temnomoideae R.M.Schust. has seven genera and all but one of these are southern temperate–subantarctic. The exception is Lophochaete R.M.Schust., with three species, which is Laurasian–Himalayan in range (for included species see Schuster, 1966b). Of the seven southern temperate–subantarctic genera, three (Archeophylla, Isophyllaria and Temnoma) are treated here and the following three are outside of our area. Archaeochaete R.M.Schust. has three species, one (A. kuehnemannii R.M.Schust.) from southern South America and the Falkland Islands (see Schuster, 1966b; Engel, 1978, 1990a), one from Tristan da Cunha (A. temnomoides R.M.Schust.), and one from alpine New Guinea (A. grolleana R.M.Schust.). Archeochaete is sometimes included in Pseudolepicolea (e.g., Hässel, 1974; Grolle, 1983). Herzogiaria Fulford, with only H. teres (Steph.) Fulford of southern South America (see Hässel and Solari, 1976; Hässel, 1981). Pseudolepicolea Fulford & J.Taylor,, with one species, P. quadrilaciniata (Sullivan) Fulford & J.Taylor, of southern South America and South Georgia (see Hässel and Solari, 1976; Schuster, 2000a).
A fourth subfamily ( subfam. Trichocoleoideae) is sometimes included here (Schuster, 1980c, 1984e, 2000a, 2001d). This strongly tropical group is here treated at the rank of family (Trichocoleaceae).
