Plants: green, yellow-green, or yellow-brown. Stems: with paraphyllia absent; axillary hair distal cells 1–3, linear or shortly so. Stem: leaves sometimes more erect when dry, ± recurved, sometimes slightly homomallous, densely or sparsely inserted, 0.2–0.5 mm wide; base erect to almost spreading; acumen 43–62% leaf length; basal alar cells long- to short-rectangular, distal alar cells quadrate to rectangular, alar region large, reaching from margin 40–50% distance to costa at insertion. Seta: 1.2–2.2 cm.
Lowlands, mountains, subalpine, decaying wood, soil, rock. low to high elevations (0-3000 m). Greenland, Alta., N.B., Nfld. and Labr. (Nfld.), N.W.T., Ont., Que., Sask., Yukon, Alaska, Colo., Minn., N.H., N.Y., Pa., S.Dak., Tenn., Vt., Mexico, West Indies (Guadeloupe, Hispaniola), Central America (Guatemala, Honduras), South America (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela), Eurasia. Discussion.