Fissidens noronhensis Teixeira, Bordin & M. Carv.

De, Tamara Poliana, Teixeira, Oliveira, A, Allan Laid, Faria, lkimim, Bordin, Juçara & Carvalho-Silva, Micheline, 2022, Phylogeny and morphology of Fissidentaceae Schimp. in the South Atlantic Islands and description of a new species, Cryptogamie, Bryologie 20 (1), pp. 1-8 : 4

Fissidens noronhensis Teixeira, Bordin & M. Carv. -Silva, sp. nov.

( Fig. 2 )

DIAGNOSIS. — The new species differs from Fissidens crispus by its small plants (± 2 mm versus 4-35 mm alt.), thin-walled and inconspicuously papillose (papillae present on some cells but hardly visible with an optical microscope and visible in a few cells only when observed with SEM). The new species resembles F. lindbergii , but can easily be distinguished by its much smaller cells (7.5 × 5 µm versus 27-67 µm in F. lindbergii ) and its almost smooth cells. When observed with an optical microscope and even when observed with SEM the papillae are visible in a few cells only, whereas in F. lindbergii papillae are easily visible in the center of the cells.

HOLOTYPE. — Brazil. Pernambuco, Fernando de Noronha, Trilha para Baia dos Golfinhos, 3°51’25”S, 32°26’37”W, 09.V.2014, Pereira & Santos 480 (holo-, UB1029235 ; iso-, SP).

TYPE LOCALITY. — Trilha para Baia dos Golfinhos, Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco ( Brazil).

ETYMOLOGY. — From latin noronhensis , referring to the name of Fernando de Noronha Archipelago.

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL. — Brazil. Pernambuco, Fernando de Noronha,3°86’55.56”S, 32°42’44.44”W, 09.V.2014, Pereira & Santos 460 (UB); 3°85’80.56”S, 32°44’27.78”W, 04.V.2014, Pereira & Santos 235 (UB); 3°85’75”S, 32°44’41.67”W, 10.II.2014, Pereira & Santos 95 (UB); 3°51’56”S, 32°25’28”W, 09.V.2014, Pereira & Santos 452 (UB).

DESCRIPTION

Plants light to dark green. Stems monomorphic, unbranched or branched, quite variable in length, 2-3 mm long × 1.35- 1.5 mm wide often dark brown red or castaneous proximally; weak axillary hyaline nodules present; epidermis and outer tiers of cortical cell small, incrassate, pigmented, inner cortical cells larger, thin-walled, hyaline, central strand present or absent; rhizoids basal, branched, smooth, brownish to castaneous; leaves crispate when dry, as many as 6 pairs, distant to imbricate, oblong to lanceolate, 0.7- 0.10 mm long × 0.2- 0.3 mm wide, acute apex, margin entire, typically limbate on all laminae, limbidium usually ending slightly below leaf apex and typically reaching the leaf insertion (shorter in Fig. 2F ), limbidial cells uni-to tristratose, intramarginal by 1-3 rows of quadrate to oblong chlorophyllose cells on the proximal parts of vaginant laminae, costa percurrent, bryoides type, dorsal lamina variable, even on the same plant, ceasing at to ending slightly above the insertion to long decurrent, vaginant laminae of cauline leaves ½ leaf length, acute, equal or nearly so; lamina cells eguttulate, unistratose, firm walled inconspicuously unipapillose, papillae not to hardly visible with an optical microscope, cells 7.5 × 5 µm hexagonal, often arranged in distinct rows in dorsal and ventral laminae. Sporophyte not observed.

REMARKS

Fissidens noronhensis sp. nov. shows morphological resemblance to F. crispus and F. lindbergii , but is genetically distant from both. With high support (100/93/1), comprising 36 mutations using the markers rps4 e trnG, being 26 transitions and 10 transversions when compared to F. lindbergii and 34 mutations, 23 transitions and 11 transversions compared to F. crispus .

Figures

FIG. 2. — Fissidens noronhensis Teixeira, Bordin & M. Carv.-Silva, sp. nov.: A, vegetative plant; B, oblong leaf; C, axillary nodules; D, cross section vaginant laminae; E, leaf with acute apex; F basal part of leaf; G, mid leaf with hexagonal cells. Scale bars: A, 500 µm; B, 200 µm; C, E-G, 100 µm; D, 50 µm.