Identification notes
A rare, declining species currently listed as Endangered on the British Red List of bryophytes. It is primarily a species of bare, neutral or acidic soil in coastal areas, occurring in habitats such as soft cliffs, earth banks and mud-capped walls, especially in exposed situations, though has also been found inland. Recent records are mainly from south-west Wales and south-west England, one of its strongholds being the Lizard, Cornwall. Further information on the history of its discovery and past status can be found in Porley (2013).
Like several other coastal Tortula spp. it forms pale green patches made up of small rosettes of ovate to lanceolate leaves with translucent hair-points, which are relatively short in this species. It is longer-lived than some of the common ephemeral species such as T. truncata, so patches may have mixtures of fruiting and non-fruiting shoots. Older shoots have withered leaves below. Capsules start to develop in late autumn, maturing usually in January to March. They are an elongated ellipsoid or obovoid shape, most similar to T. caucasica (with which it may occur) and T. lanceola, with a beak covered by a calyptra. Due to the similarity to other species field identification is not usually possible and is best confirmed under a microscope by the presence of narrowly recurved leaf margins and cells with prominent papillae. Leaves are about 1.5-2.5mm long with a 0.2-0.6mm hair-point. The capsule is about 0.8-1.7 mm long and held on a seta 2-3mm long.
