Weissia brachycarpa var. brachycarpa

A dark green, acrocarpous moss which forms loose or dense patches on damp soil in fields, on banks, beside water bodies, on roadsides and other places. It is very similar to Weissia controversa and is best separated from it when capsules are present. The main identification feature is the small mouth of the capsule which is slightly raised from the main body and covered by a membrane. At maturity it looks like a pin hole. It is distinguished from Weissia brachycarpa var. obliqua by the plane (not inrolled) margins of its narrowly lanceolate leaves whose basal part is not wider than the upper part. It has a scattered distribution in Britain but it is not widespread and it is largely absent from the north. It is realtively uncommon in Wales and their are few records of it in West Glamorgan. Sporophyte capsules are frequent in spring.