Guide to Liverworts of Oregon: Hygrobiella laxifolia (Hook.) Spruce
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1b plants leafy > 3b leaves not divided, not ciliate > 6b oil bodies solitary/absent > 13b oil bodies absent > 16b underleaves large > 18b underleaves bilobed > 19b Leaves remote >
1b plants leafy > 3b leaves not divided, not ciliate > 6a oil bodies 2+ or unknown > 7b no small dorsal lobe > 10a succubous > 11b isophyllous > 25b leaves bilobed or entire > 27a Leaves bilobed >
Synonym: None.
Special Status: ORBIC List 3.
Recognition: Wispy, straggly shoots with bifid leaves and bifid underleaves nearly as large as the lateral leaves.
Distribution:Grows splash zone of streams, often near waterfalls (Schofield 2002); widespread in the West from Washington northwards; a single verified Oregon locality.
Comments: The primary basis for including this in the Oregon liverwort flora was a report of a Foster collection from "Hult" Oregon (Clark and Frye 1928). Perhaps this means Hullt, in Marion County. I was sceptical of the report since Clark's identifications are notoriously subject to error; the Foster specimen should be looked for in the University of Washington herbarium. It is worth noting that Frye and Clark (1943) cite their own previous work but list no examinations.
A collection from Opal Creek, Marion County, by Duncan Thomas in 2008 provides a verification of this species in Oregon.
Schuster (1974) suggests Hygrobiella laxifolia occurs in "the Coastal Ranges and Sierras, etc." but makes no mention of California.
Left: Vancouver, B.C. Canada. Godfrey & Schofield 67,771. Right: Vancouver, B.C. Canada. Schofield 13,376.
Hybrobiella laxifolia from Frye & Clark 1943, p. 186.
Hybrobiella laxifolia. Linn County, Oregon. D. Thomas s.n..
Hybrobiella laxifolia. Linn County, Oregon. D. Thomas s.n..
Hybrobiella laxifolia. Linn County, Oregon. D. Thomas s.n..
Hybrobiella laxifolia. Linn County, Oregon. D. Thomas s.n..