Guide to Liverworts of Oregon:Sphaerocarpos texanus Aust.
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Sphaerocarpos 1a narrow mouth on involucres
Synonym: None.
Special Status: None.
Recognition: The inflated, flask-shaped involucres are unmistakeable diagnostic features of the genus. Of the two species known from Oregon are easily distinguished by involucre shape. This species has a bulbous involucre with a constricted mouth while S. hians has an urn shaped involucre with a flaring mouth.
Distribution: On recently disturbed soil; widespread at low elevations; as common in urban areas as in natural habitats.
Comments: We should be looking out for Sphaerocarpos michelii; a species with spores having projections at the intersections of aerolae. The size and number of aerolae is a good feature, demonstrated by the SEM pictures by W. Doyle below (used with permission.) It is occasional in northern Europe and may be in Oregon, having been reported from California (Doyle, 2006). All Oregon specimens which I have been able to examine closely are S. texanus.
Lane Co., Oregon. DHW m1511a.
Sphaerocarpos texanus, Crenshaw Road, Lane Co., Oregon. DHW m3185.
Sphaerocarpos texanus, Crenshaw Road, Lane Co., Oregon. DHW m3185.
Sphaerocarpos texanus, Finley Wildlife Refuge, Benton Co., Oregon D. Thomas 13804.
Sphaerocarpos texanus. Note the papillae on lamellae walls. Finley Wildlife Refuge, Benton Co., Oregon D. Thomas 13804.
Top: Sphaerocarpos texanus. Santa Ana Mountains, Riverside Co., California. Doyle 7288 (UC). Bottom: Sphaerocarpos michelii. Higgins Flat Road, Modoc Co., California. Doyle 7489 (UC).