Crescent-cup Liverwort - Lunularia cruciata
Forms large, pale green, dichotomously branching thalli to 12 mm wide. The shiny, faintly lined surface is dotted with tiny, though quite conspicuous air pores. It possesses crescent shaped receptacles unique amongst thallose liverworts, which contain green, disc like gemmae. When dry, thalli can become yellowish, with inrolled margins, and the reticulations can almost disappear. Capsules are very rare, and are borne on a distinctive, cross like, stalked female receptacle.
Prefers damp, shady places such as the bases of damp walls and path edges, often close to human habitation. Can be a weed of gardens and greenhouses. Sometimes found on lane banks or shady soil, and often abundant on silty boulders.
All year.
Common.
Common.
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Species profile
- Common names
- Crescent-cup Liverwort
- Species group:
- Mosses & Liverworts
- Kingdom:
- Plantae
- Order:
- Lunulariales
- Family:
- Lunulariaceae
- Records on NatureSpot:
- 50
- First record:
- 10/11/1991 (Dennis Ballard)
- Last record:
- 19/10/2024 (Smith, Peter)
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