''Leucolepis acanthoneura'' is a species of
moss
Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...
in the family
Mniaceae
Mniaceae is a moss family in the order Bryales.
Taxonomy
The family Mniaceae includes the following genera:
* '' Cinclidium''
* '' Cyrtomnium''
* '' Epipterygium''
* ''Leucolepis''
* '' Mielichhoferia''
* ''Mnium''
* '' Orthomnion''
* ...
.
[ It is known as leucolepis umbrella moss or Menzies' tree moss (from its synonym, ''Leucolepis menziesii'').][ It is ]endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to the Pacific Coast in Canada and the United States.[
''Leucolepis acanthoneura'' is found frequently in moist lowland ]rainforest
Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...
s, where it can form large populations on logs, boulders, wet organic soil, compacted soil and humus. It occasionally extends upwards onto the lower portions of tree trunks.
The plants are light green, glossy, tree-shaped, and about high. The stems are upright with a circle of branches at their tips.
The Saanich people
The Saanich or (, ''Xwsenəč'') are Indigenous peoples of North America, indigenous nations from the north coast of the Gulf Islands, Gulf and San Juan Islands, southern Vancouver Island and the southern edge of the Lower Mainland in British C ...
used this moss to make yellow dye for baskets.
References
Mniaceae
Bryophyta of North America
{{Bryophyte-stub