Dicranum montanum Mountain Fork-moss

A small, dioicous Dicranum species of woodlands which forms dense cushions or patches on tree trunks, especially acid-barked treeslike Alder (Alnus glutinosa), Birch (Betula species), Oak (Quercus species) and Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna). It also grows on logs and stumps but only rarely on rock. The leaves become crisped when dry and then it can resemble Dicranoweisia cirrata. It has a scattered distribution in Britain and is most common in the southeast. It is absent from Ireland and from much of south and west Wales. It is rare in West Glamorgan with just one record from a wooden stump near Aberpergwm in Neath Port Talbot. Sporophyte capsules are unknown in Britain.