Tortella squarrosa Side-fruited Crisp-moss

A dioicous, acrocarpous moss which grows in loose tufts on base rich soils such as sand dunes, calcareous grasslands, quarries and open mosaic habitats. It is similar to Tortella tortuosa, particularly when dry when it has similar, crisped and contorted leaves. However moist plants have a much neater appearance with leaves that are shorter and conspicuously curved away from the stem. It is a Submediterranean-Subatlantic species which has a rather local, coastal distribution in Britain. It is found scattered along the south Wales and north Wales coasts and it is almost confined to the south Gower coast in West Glamorgan. Sporophyte and gemmae are unknown in Britain, so it relies on dispersal via detached leaves.