Hypnum cupressiforme var. lacunosum Great Plait-moss

An greenish brown, dioicous, pleurocarpous moss with golden or orange tints, which grows on well drained, base-rich substrates including fine calcareous gravel, sand dunes, open mosiac habitats and coal tips. It is a robust, chunky Hypnum with somewhat swollen shoots which make it quite distinctive and only likely to be confused with Hypnum cupressiforme var. cupressiforme, which is usually less robust. The two taxa are closely aligned and they are not mapped separately in the Atlas of British & Irish Bryophytes. However, given that Hypnum cupressiforme var. lacunosum is distinct and recognisable in the field, we have mapped it separately. It is widely distributed along the coast of West Glamorgan in sand dunes and open mosaic habitats where it often grows with Homalothecium lutescens and Syntrichia ruraliformis. It also occurs in scattered, inland locations. Sporophyte capsules are uncommon.